Over the last year there have been a number of animated debates in the pub about ‘why not  in defence of youth and community?’ The question remains open. In the meantime our close friends in Scotland have produced yet another challenging group of articles focused on community empowerment. The editorial introduction by Akwugo Jemelu and Mae Shaw begins:

Community development in Scotland has a rich and diverse history. It has
emerged from an ambivalent provenance: benevolent paternalism, social
welfare (and control), and social and political action ‘from below’ in
pursuit of social justice. It has been drawn upon to justify policies from
left, right and centre of the political spectrum. It has been deployed in the
state and voluntary sector and, more recently, has become embroiled in
market competition. It is therefore a highly contested concept, with
predictably unpredictable consequences.

What community development means at any particular time is defined by
all those interests which have sought to name, frame and regulate it. It is
the tensions and contradictions generated in the current context by the
interface between these different interests – professional, political,
ideological, social, economic – that this collection is concerned to explore.
By bringing together a range of authors who locate their work both inside
and outside the community development tradition, we wish to highlight
different perspectives that examine how collective decision-making and
action can be used either to strengthen or undermine social justice claims
for marginalised groups. In doing so, we wish to present this volume as a
contribution to critical debate about the role and effectiveness of
community development in contested contexts.

The Glasgow Papers : Community Empowerment

If anyone, especially students, would like an old-fashioned hard copy, let me know. There may be some available.

And, if anyone would like to review the papers, we would be over the moon.