A Hidden World Within The Modern Megacity

'Shadow Cities,' a book by Robert Neuwirth. explores the world of illegal urban squatters in some of the world's largest megacities.

1 minute read

September 19, 2005, 6:00 AM PDT

By Brenda Meyer


"About a fifth of Rio de Janeiro’s residents, half of Mumbai’s, and two-thirds of Nairobi’s live as urban squatters, a category that includes an estimated 1 billion people around the world. They don’t hold title to the land on which they live; they are loosely if at all regulated; they do not pay taxes; they seldom receive postal delivery, water, sewers, roads, or other public services; and, in general, they live with a minimal legal order...

Shadow Cities is at its best shining an investigative lens into areas of urban life that have seldom been described before. It is a wonderful story of the vitality and creativity of ordinary people who have managed to survive and sometimes even prosper in the face of government indifference if not hostility."

Sunday, September 18, 2005 in Hawaii Reporter

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