Explaining differences in the strength of squatters’ movements in western European cities

Abstract

Squatters occupy and restore empty buildings to establish self-managed social centres, where they put in practice alternative ways of living while engaging in various protest campaigns. Episodes of squatters’ activism have occurred in many European cities, including the ‘occupy’ movement and the demonstrations against austerity measures in several countries. Despite this trajectory, there is little comparative research on squatters’ movements. This article addresses this gap by examining the determinants of the strength of squatters’ movements in Western Europe using an original dataset of 61 cities (2001–2007). Employing logistic regression analysis, this article investigates the influence of factors that have not been previously examined in a comparative framework. The study shows that large leftist communities provide crucial resources for the squatters’ movement, while prominent extreme right parties polarize the local society, triggering squatters’ activism. Moreover, it demonstrates that larger cities are related to stronger movements and discusses the mechanisms that explain this association. Finally, this article shows that youth unemployment impinges on stronger movements when it interacts with other variables, but overall higher levels of youth unemployment are related to stronger movements. Therefore, resources, polarization and the structural configuration of the city are important determinants of the differential strength of this movement across locations.