1st Edition

Indefensible Space The Architecture of the National Insecurity State

Edited By Michael Sorkin Copyright 2008
418 Pages
by Routledge

418 Pages
by Routledge

420 Pages
by Routledge

Showing how the upswell of paranoia and growing demand for security in the post-9/11 world has paradoxically created widespread insecurity, these varied essays examine how this anxiety-laden mindset erodes spaces both architectural and personal, encroaching on all aspects of everyday life. Starting from the most literal level—barricades and barriers in front of buildings, beefed up border... Read more

1. Homelands on the Range Trevor Boddy  2. Military Operations on Urban Territory Christine Boyer  3. Border Urbanisms, Chronicles from the Edge Teddy Cruz  4. A Short History of the Car Bomb Mike Davis  5. Life Support Nan Ellin  6. The American Empire and Imperial Might Mark Gillem  7. Target Revisited: From Rodney King to Abu Ghraib Ruth Wilson Gilmore  8. The Unfolding Regime of Surveillance and Youth Culture Cindi Katz  9. Global Transparencies Laura Kurgan  10. Blank Slates and Disaster Zones: The State, September 11th and the Displacement of Chinatown Laura Y. Liu  11. The New Emotions of Home: Fear, Insecurity, and Paranoia Setha Low  12. Staged Authenticity Today Dean MacCannell  13. Back to Zero Michael Sorkin  14. Seeing through Walls Eyal Weizman

Biography

Michael Sorkin is an architect, professional writer, and professor at City College. He is a frequent contributor to the New York Times, and is generally regarded as one of the most prominent architectural writers in America.