Final Essay

Over the last couple years, gaining the status of a global city has become something that is sort after by cities. According to Sassen, a global city is defined by how a city responds to globalization, and if the city has strong economic functions that create trade opportunities with other cities. Cities implement vast number of changes to ensure that their city gets the global attention it deserves. These changes then in effect create vast number of inequalities in the city. Other alternative forms of developments have appeared to give urban residents a better alternative than a global city like a just city. This paper will address what a city needs to functional for it residents, and how urban life works. It will also focus on the concept

For example, the article by Guardian talked about how the city Rio de Janeiro in Brazil when it hosted the Olympics and 2014 World Cup benefitted only construction firms, real-estate companies, private security firms. These residents who were mostly locals, and poor people in that particular area were placed in spaces that was hard for them to survive in. Maria de Penha a local resident that has been affect by these global events says, “Our community has been lost” (Watts, 2016). This goes to prove how a global city can’t be the only way cities could become successful, because they demolish poor people’s communities. Additionally, Bangalore the center-hub of IT in India is another city that is creating massive inequality. Goldman mentions in his article how Bangalore has taken advantage of the vast number of IT-related jobs that have been offshored to them. Multinational cooperation’s are setting offices in the outskirts of Bangalore making that area’s land vital. The locals and poor residents of that area are asked to sell their land to the government to a fairly reasonable price, and at times a price lower than what the land it actually worth (Goldman, 2011; 6-12). When these locals are placed in new spaces it becomes hard for them to survive, because some of the locals are farmers who are dependent on agriculture and farming. Therefore, after analyzing these two examples, global cities can’t possibly be the only way to success, because they create immense