Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession
Precariously homed people do not control the spaces they call home. As a result, their belongings are governed by the actions of people granted greater legal powers. To fully understand the practice and effects of such regulations requires a community-engaged research methodology. In this paper, we...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Western Libraries, The University of Western Ontario
2024-08-01
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| Series: | International Journal on Homelessness |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/ijoh/article/view/16988 |
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| author | Marina Chavez Terri Evans Claire Shapton Alexandra Flynn Marie-Eve Sylvestre Nicholas Blomley |
| author_facet | Marina Chavez Terri Evans Claire Shapton Alexandra Flynn Marie-Eve Sylvestre Nicholas Blomley |
| author_sort | Marina Chavez |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Precariously homed people do not control the spaces they call home. As a result, their belongings are governed by the actions of people granted greater legal powers. To fully understand the practice and effects of such regulations requires a community-engaged research methodology. In this paper, we focus on Abbotsford, in British Columbia, Canada, centring the experience of precariously homed people. Regulation of belongings is described by one of our collaborators as the ‘hum’: an omnipresent experience of property dispossession and devaluation. We explain the hum’s pervasiveness and scope, grounding it in particular forms of urban-legal governance, property law, and hierarchical (de)valuation. We trace its violent and traumatizing effects, noting the way it intensifies vulnerability. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e984f74abbce42a8833990e44c3db98e |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2564-310X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-08-01 |
| publisher | Western Libraries, The University of Western Ontario |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal on Homelessness |
| spelling | doaj-art-e984f74abbce42a8833990e44c3db98e2025-08-20T01:47:54ZengWestern Libraries, The University of Western OntarioInternational Journal on Homelessness2564-310X2024-08-015111513110.5206/ijoh.2023.3.1698811245Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday DispossessionMarina Chavez0Terri Evans1Claire Shapton2Alexandra Flynn3Marie-Eve Sylvestre4Nicholas Blomley5Simon Fraser UniversitySimon Fraser UniversitySimon Fraser UniversityUniversity of British ColumbiaUniversity of OttawaSimon Fraser UniversityPrecariously homed people do not control the spaces they call home. As a result, their belongings are governed by the actions of people granted greater legal powers. To fully understand the practice and effects of such regulations requires a community-engaged research methodology. In this paper, we focus on Abbotsford, in British Columbia, Canada, centring the experience of precariously homed people. Regulation of belongings is described by one of our collaborators as the ‘hum’: an omnipresent experience of property dispossession and devaluation. We explain the hum’s pervasiveness and scope, grounding it in particular forms of urban-legal governance, property law, and hierarchical (de)valuation. We trace its violent and traumatizing effects, noting the way it intensifies vulnerability.https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/ijoh/article/view/16988belongingsdispossessionregulationdevaluationprecarityprecariously homed people |
| spellingShingle | Marina Chavez Terri Evans Claire Shapton Alexandra Flynn Marie-Eve Sylvestre Nicholas Blomley Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession International Journal on Homelessness belongings dispossession regulation devaluation precarity precariously homed people |
| title | Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession |
| title_full | Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession |
| title_fullStr | Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession |
| title_full_unstemmed | Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession |
| title_short | Life in the ‘Hum’: Belongings and Everyday Dispossession |
| title_sort | life in the hum belongings and everyday dispossession |
| topic | belongings dispossession regulation devaluation precarity precariously homed people |
| url | https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/ijoh/article/view/16988 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marinachavez lifeinthehumbelongingsandeverydaydispossession AT terrievans lifeinthehumbelongingsandeverydaydispossession AT claireshapton lifeinthehumbelongingsandeverydaydispossession AT alexandraflynn lifeinthehumbelongingsandeverydaydispossession AT marieevesylvestre lifeinthehumbelongingsandeverydaydispossession AT nicholasblomley lifeinthehumbelongingsandeverydaydispossession |