Abstract

Public space offers an empirical means for thinking about diversity in the creation of a more just city (Fainstein 2000, Low, Taplin and Scheld 2005). It is here that race, class, gender, age, sexual preference, ethnicity and ability differences are experienced and negotiated in a safe forum for political action, communication and democratic practice (Low 2000, Young 2001). Difficulties encountered in defining and studying what constitutes an equitable distribution of public space necessitate employing a broader framework of justice to utilize the lessons learned from planning and design practice and to encourage the use of public spaces for democratic practices (Fincher and Iveson 2008, Low and Smith 2006, Mitchell 2003).