(De)radicalization and the multicultural city. Security, urban policy and everyday life in Brussels and Marseille. A comparative study.

Migration, integration and security have been among the major issues of urban governance in European metropolitan centres since the early 19th century and have been the object of various studies. Yet, less attention has been paid to how urban and security policies targeting ‘immigrant neighbourhoods’ in European cities have been transformed in our era of the ‘war on terror’. Taking Brussels and Marseille as our case studies, this project seeks to investigate the reconfiguration of urban (in)security in relation to deradicalization policies, its relationship to local institutional actors and civil society as well as the everyday experiences of those living in targeted neighbourhoods. This proposal is structured according to the following four research objectives. Firstly, this project seeks to offer a historical overview of these shifting public policies and to trace the growing entanglement between policies of urban regeneration and deradicalization. Secondly, we seek to examine the ways in which policy makers and civil servants participate and/or reflect upon these perceived changes. Thirdly, we will examine the way in which the civil society responds to these changes, and and how it influences their position and practices. Finally, this project will document how local residents in two distinct neighbourhoods in Brussels and Marseille relate to these changes, and their senses of belonging and security.