Towards Alternative Spatial Imaginaries: The Case of ‘Reclaim the City’

While spatial apartheid is no longer formally maintained in Cape Town, South Africa, it seems at times to be bolstered by a “colonial spatial imaginary”. This concept, which is introduced in this chapter, encompasses collective perceptions and values that shape place identities, construct belonging in different places, and normalise associated spatial patterns and activities. In this chapter, we trace the colonial spatial imaginary through Cape Town’s colonial era to the present, to reinforce the relevance of urban space to the work of decolonial community psychologists. Drawing on the findings of a Participatory Action Research project with members of Reclaim the City, we aim to understand how the movement challenges eviction and displacement from the gentrifying suburb of Woodstock in Cape Town. In particular, by seeking to analyse Reclaim the City’s multi-faceted work as a decolonial enactment of community psychology, we examine how its creative praxis enables members to challenge the colonial spatial imaginary and build alternative spatial imaginaries.