Developments in Exarcheia: Gentrification or Political Purge?
A literature review of local and global factors influencing gentrification in the neighbourhood of Exarcheia, Athens
By: Girav_ and anonymous (2021)
By: Girav_
Introduction
Why is gentrification happening in Exarcheia? The first, generic part of that question can be answered by Athens’ world city status (Diez-Pisonero, 2020; GaWC, 2018). Gentrification occurs in these types of urban area, which are well connected to global capital and cultural circulation, as investors can make more money in areas with high property values, which most of the time lie in the central areas of big cities, just like Exarcheia, which is a short distance from popular tourist attractions like the Parthenon - the red star in Figure 1 (Smith, 2002). If Exarcheia had been on the outskirts of Athens, the process of gentrification that is happening there now, would not have happened in all likelihood, as these places tend to be less connected to global capital and cultural circulation.
Figure 1: Map of neighbourhoods in the municipality of Athens (Athensmap360, n.d.)
In the rest of this paper, we will analyze the details and place-specific reasons for the gentrification in Exarcheia. The unique historical background of Exarcheia will be discussed first, to provide basic background information that lies at the root of Exarcheia’s problems. Furthermore, Athens’ economic hardship, and its problems surrounding Airbnb will be discussed in more depth. Lastly, the seemingly paradoxical nature of anarcho-tourism in Exarcheia will be discussed, alongside supply- and demand-side gentrification theories. And finally, the research question stated in the chapter societal backdrop below will be answered in the conclusion.
Societal backdrop
The neighbourhood of Exarcheia in Athens is a unique neighbourhood with a rich anarchist history (Bateman, 2019b). Many students, artists, anarchists, squatters, activists and refugees live there (Vradis, 2009; Luimes, 2018). This neighbourhood has existed relatively unchanged for a long time. However, the economic crisis of 2008, which hit Greece especially hard, has had a major influence on the neighbourhood (and the whole of Greece for that matter) (Bateman, 2019a & 2019b; Crabapple, 2020). Add to this the long-standing housing problems in the neighbourhood, the rise of Airbnb, the active stance of residents towards accommodating refugees during the refugee crisis and the rise of anti-refugee sentiment in right-wing politics, and one can see that this series of developments has inevitably paved the way for a complicated and volatile future (Koptyeava, 2017; Bateman, 2019b; Luimes, 2018).
Gentrification was kickstarted by the economic crisis in 2008 (Luimes, 2018; Bateman, 2019b). The rise of unemployment drove some residents to the decision to exploit the new opportunities provided by Airbnb, in an attempt to generate income that was partially or completely lost (Luimes, 2018; Bateman, 2019b). On a larger scale, the Greek government was affected by the same problems, and were also under pressure to generate new sources of income. They therefore implemented the ‘Golden Visa’ scheme, in which foreign nationals could acquire a special residency visa in exchange for an investment of at least €250.000 in Greek property, which further fed gentrification (Bateman 2019a; Tonchev & Davarinou, 2017).
Add to the equation that until a short while ago the police left the neighbourhood alone, but since the right-wing political party ‘New Democracy’ came to power, plans to sanitize the neighbourhood have been made and already partly executed (Vradis, 2009; Crabapple, 2020; Totale, 2019). The situation in Exarcheia then emerges as a development that has certain aspects in common with the process of gentrification, however there are also factors completely unique to Exarcheia such as the ideological motivation on the part of the government as well as on the part of the local population. A cocktail of local and global factors becomes apparent, from which the question arises: What are the causes and effects of the gentrification unique to Exarcheia?
Exarcheia’s origin story
Before talking about contemporary problems in Exarcheia it is fundamental to understand the origin of leftist counterculture in Exarcheia. On November 17th 1973, the military junta of Greece raided the Polytechnic University, located in Exarcheia, killing 40 protesters on site (Vradis, 2009). This was the catalyst which led to the downfall of the military regime in 1974, with Exarcheia and its young students at the frontline. It also resulted in a new law: the ‘Academic Asylum Law’, banning police and military from all university grounds in the name of academic freedom (Vradis, 2009). After the events of 1973, with the university now acting as a safe haven from the state and police violence, Exarcheia became a hotspot for many (radical) leftists in Athens and Greece, sowing the seeds for its unique culture, and by extension its future tourism problems (Vradis, 2009).
Fast-forward to 2008, the beginning of Exarcheia’s contemporary problems. This was the year Greece was hit severely by the financial crisis. It was also the year of massive riots in Athens, fueled by the economic hardship and instigated by the murder of a 15 year-old boy at the hands of the police in Exarcheia (Vradis, 2009; Bateman, 2019b). Once again, Exarcheia found itself at the epicenter of public unrest in Greece. To suppress the riots, the government and the police worked together with so-called “security battalions”, which consisted of neo-Nazi paramilitary groups among others (Vradis, 2009). This cooperation of the state with the extreme-right consolidated the anti-authoritarian sentiment of the leftists, and led to political activists, teenage students, refugees, football hooligans and the unemployed banding together against the authoritarian turn the government had taken (Vradis, 2009).
After the 2008 riots, anti-capitalist and anti-fascist groups started initiatives in Exarcheia, with new political formations based on horizontal democracy and anti-consumerism (Chatzidakis, 2013). Examples of such initiatives are the squatting of private and public spaces (including guerrilla parks), anti-consumerist Bazaars, collective kitchens, no-ticket cinemas, free theater plays, free art exhibitions, free educational courses and trading with the Zapatistas (Figure 2), a similarly structured anarchist commune in Mexico, making their anti-consumerist economy local as well as global (Chatzidakis, 2013).
Figure 2: Zapatista-coffee (Chatzidakis, 2013)
This formation of local initiatives and the squatting of private and public spaces, essentially stealing them from the government and property-owners for their own needs, is a typical example of the Right to the City movement of Henri Lefebvres (1996), where one of the aspects is land appropriation, explained by Purcell (2002) as:
“Appropriation includes the right of inhabitants to physically access, occupy, and use urban space, and so this notion has been the primary focus of those who advocate the right of people to be physically present in the space of the city” (Purcell, 2002: 103)
The anti-capitalist and anti-fascist organizations have also functioned as a safe haven for refugees (Koptyeava, 2017). They provide refugees with housing in squatted buildings, as an alternative to Greece’s refugee camps. In one squat, the City Plaza Refugee Accommodation Centre, about 400 refugees are housed (Koptyeava, 2017). Besides housing, they provide the refugees with three meals a day, basic healthcare and free education for their children at local schools. Parties, excursions to museums, football matches and film screenings are organized internally as well (Koptyeava, 2017).
However, the political right has started similar initiatives in Athens as well, claiming their right to the city as well, with a less inclusionary approach. They started creating “migrant-free zones”, “solidarity trading from-Greeks-for-Greeks” and soup kitchens where you are only served with proof of Greek nationality (Chatzidakis, 2013). These initiatives were supported by the “New Democracy” party (Chatzidakis, 2013). Clearly, the political divide in Athens was still there after the 2008 riots, be it in a less violent manifestation.
Economic downturn and the rise of Airbnb
The economic crisis of 2008 had many different effects on Greece and Athens. The most relevant one to explain the gentrification in Exarcheia is unemployment. Many Greek people lost their jobs due to the crisis, and for some of those (mainly in the urban area of Athens) who owned housing, Airbnb presented itself as a welcome source to generate new income (Bateman, 2019b; CrimethInc, n.d.; Chatzidakis, 2013).
The unique culture and environment of the neighbourhood that has been explained in this paper, the result of many years of anarchist and radical-leftist struggle, played a key part in the attraction of the neighbourhood (Bateman, 2019b; CrimethInc, n.d.; Chatzidakis, 2013). For the alternative tourist, Exarcheia provides a unique setting, where the perception of authenticity of the neighbourhood attracts them (Bateman, 2019b; CrimethInc, n.d.; Chatzidakis, 2013). For example, it is riddled with political graffiti (Figure 3); there are even special tours that take you to the most interesting ones (Luimes, 2018; Bateman, 2019b).
This then, forms a unique setting which laid the foundation for the inception of gentrification in Exarcheia. It becomes apparent that the process started as a process on the individual level, somewhat reminiscent of some of the aspects of demand side gentrification as explained by Ley (1996) – the lifestyle and the accompanying aesthetic of the neighbourhood is what attracts individuals. It differs fundamentally though, because it is not really a back to the city movement of people, seeing as it isn’t buying and selling property, or renting it out for people to live in – it is letting for tourist purposes.
Figure 3: Political graffiti in Exarcheia (Bateman, 2019b; CrimethInc, n.d.)
The paradox of anarcho-tourism, and the bridge to supply side gentrification
The unique leftist/anarchist environment of the neighbourhood appealed to the alternative and more adventurous tourist, such as the so-called “anarcho-tourists” (Bateman, 2019b; CrimethInc, n.d.; Chatzidakis, 2013). The rise of Exarcheia as a tourist destination was fueled by its unique selling point, which made demand for short-stay housing grow (Luimes, 2018; Bateman, 2019b).
“The man wears shorts, high socks, a hat and a camera. He says to his wife, pointing at the wall: ‘Oh my god, look! There’s a hammer and a sickle painted on the wall. There are real communists here, like you’re going back in time.’ After inspecting the graffiti, they walk to a terrace on the square to buy a glass of Heineken for 4 Euro’s.” (Luimes, 2018)
The quote above illustrates the paradox of tourism in Exarcheia. The people come for a first-hand experience of the radical-leftist environment, but they do not participate in it. Instead, the increase in visitors and the consumption of goods and services drives up rents and prices. When neighbourhood shops, restaurants and hotels (Airbnb’s) become more profitable through tourism, it makes them more interesting as an investment.
In recent years, the increase in Airbnb-listings in the radical leftist neighbourhood is reaching unprecedented levels. In 2017, there were 5,127 listings reserved at least once on Airbnb in Athens — a 6.8% increase from the previous year (4,801 listings), and a 56.5% increase from 2015 (3,275 listings). 499 of the 5,127 listings in 2017 were in Exarcheia, the second highest density in all of Athens, with 9,7% of all Athenian listings. Only the Plaka neighbourhood overtakes it, with 681 listings (Sideris, 2018).
The spike in Airbnb listings has happened because the initial small-scale success of Airbnb on the individual level in Exarcheia has combined with other macroeconomic developments in Athens in the form of urban entrepreneurialism by the government (Bateman, 2019a; Bateman, 2019b; Gourzis et al., 2019; Luimes, 2018; Tonchev & Davinariou, 2017). Firstly, the ‘Golden Visa’ scheme was conceived by the Greek government as a scheme to attract the attention of foreign investors, seeing as they were also confronted with a loss of income due to the financial crisis. The scheme was offering special residency visas to foreign investors in exchange for a minimum of €250.000 of investment in Greek properties (Tonchev & Davarinou, 2017). Second, the planning of a new metro line passing directly through the neighbourhood has increased the attraction of the neighbourhood, also partly because this will enable tourists to travel to the city centre much easier (Gourzis et al., 2019). Third, as mentioned in the chapter societal backdrop, the new right wing Greek government has made and already partly executed plans to “sanitize” the neighbourhood, by evicting squatters and refugees (Crabapple, 2020; Totale, 2019; Vradis, 2009).
These things combined resulted most notably in the investment of a combined total in the range of half a billion euros in Greek property by Chinese businessmen, who bought hundreds of apartments in the neighbourhood (Tonchev & Davarinou, 2017). This resulted in, as is the case in many other cities, the rise of rents in Exarcheia, driven by the fact that the investors can make more money renting the apartments out on Airbnb than they can renting it out to residents.
These developments fit much more into the category of supply side gentrification as proposed by Smith (1979; 1996), as opposed to Ley’s (1986) demand side gentrification. This is because of the transition from change instigated by individual action at first, to change as a result of large scale investment of outside capital in property. In that sense, the situation now is much more of a back to the city movement of capital. According to Alexandri (2018) the Greek government tolerates speculation, and has a laissez-faire attitude which creates conditions for this type of gentrification to thrive, and as mentioned we have seen it has facilitated large scale investment by foreign businessmen.
Another way in which the situation in Exarcheia fits into supply side gentrification, is the apparent goal of outside capital to close the rent gap (figure 4). The rent gap is essentially the difference between the actual rent of a property and the potential rent of a property, and was proposed by Smith (1979) as an explanation for the process of gentrification. In this theory, the value of the potential rent is not unlimited, and is subject to the local supply and demand of properties, local/national housing regulations and the age of the property (see figure 4). When demand for properties grows in an area, the value of the land increases which in turn causes the rent gap to increase. The unique character of Exarcheia, combined with the rise of Airbnb, created conditions where investors could charge more for a property on Airbnb than by renting it out the regular way.
Figure 4: The depreciation cycle of inner city neighbourhoods (Smith, 1979)
Conclusion
The goal of this article has been to determine an answer to the question of what the causes and effects are of the gentrification unique to Exarcheia.
In this search, multiple local and global factors have been encountered that are directly or indirectly causing gentrification in Exarcheia. Initially, there was a small-scale local rise of Airbnb due to the capitalization of home-owners in need of a new cash flow on the unique radical environment of the neighbourhood (Luimes, 2018; Bateman, 2019b). Later, this combined with the local effects of the global economic crisis - namely the foreign investment of capital in property, partly as a consequence of the ‘Golden Visa’ scheme (Tonchev & Davarinou, 2017) - to cause a type of gentrification which may best be described as supply-side gentrification as coined by Smith (1979). Many local manifestations of global developments such as the refugee crisis, triggered a local rise in anti-refugee sentiment and right-wing politics, which complicated matters by causing the state to further participate in gentrification as a strategy by evicting squatters and refugees in an attempt to sanitize the neighbourhood (Chatzidakis, 2013; Vradis, 2009; Crabapple, 2020; Totale, 2019).
The above process has caused Athens to become increasingly polarized, and the after-effects seem to be perpetuating this process. Exarcheia is a key aspect of this, being the front line of clashes between the newly elected right wing ‘New Democracy’ government at one end of the spectrum, and the original leftist population of the neighbourhood of Exarcheia on the other (Chatzidakis, 2013; Vradis, 2009). The large scale injection of investment by outside capital is an irreversible development, and the ties Athens has with the rest of the world and its flourishing tourism will most probably ensure the further progression of the pushing out of the original population and the refugees they accommodate.
“Exarcheia is not just a territory. Territory without people is nothing. I don’t care about losing Exarcheia, I care about losing the people.” (Crabapple, 2020)
This quote insinuates that some people believe that the radical-leftist culture will not continue to be found in Exarcheia for a very long time. This will perhaps, paradoxically, reduce the flow of “anarcho-tourists” to Exarcheia. The irony of the situation is that possibly, the unique culture of Exarcheia which attracted the “anarcho-tourists” in the first place, will become absent, driven out by the process set in motion by the flow of tourists who came to experience precisely that.
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