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Bargaining Identity & Difference Bargaining Identity & Difference The Construction of Local Identity at the Historical Marketplace of Ballarò, Palermo Carolien Lubberhuizen Picture on the front taken by Carolien Lubberhuizen on April 14, 2017 in Palermo 2 Bargaining Identity & Difference The Construction of Local Identity at the Historical Marketplace of Ballarò, Palermo Bachelor thesis 2016/2017 Carolien Lubberhuizen - 4153804 [email protected] Supervisor: Gerdien Steenbeek Wordcount: 23500 3 Da tempo, sono stata terra di conquista Vinci, greci, arabi, normanni e tanti sono figli che nel tempo ho visto arrivare, restare, e ripartire Vi guiderì nel profondo del mio cuore pulsante Uno dei mercati storici più grandi La parte più antica e suggestive I suoi fondatori Li chiamano Bahlara Sole di fiera Oggi, il suo nome è Ballarò Ed è conosciuto in tutto il mondo Ed è qui che i miei nuovi figli Venuti dal mare Trovano spesso una casa Un amico Un lavoro A raccontarmi Saranno due di loro Per fare scoprire com’è cambiato nel corso degli anni il mercato E come in questo luogo si continua a vendere un genere di merce Ma non solo É qui che usi e idee Parole e costumi Tradizioni e culture Si incontrano Si mescolano E si amano1 1 Poem distracted from the short documentary (2014) called I Mercati Storici di Sicilia, made by Lucio Marcucci and Giuseppe Trenta and produced by Piazza Group srl. Find the whole video on ballarothesis.wordpress.com/2017/05/01/si-vucia-sabbannia-ballaro-e-magia. 4 Since forever, I have been earth of conquest Phoenicians, Greeks, Arabs, Normans And many are sons that through time I have seen arrive, stay And leave. I will lead you to the core of my beating heart One of the biggest historic markets The most antique and suggestive part Its founders Called him Bahlara Sun of trade Today, its name is Ballarò And it is famous all over the world And it is here that my new sons Who arrived from the sea Often found a home A friend A job To tell me Shall be two of them To find out how over the course of years the market has changed And how on this place a range of products continues to be sold But not solely It is here that habits and ideas Words and customs Traditions and cultures Meat each other Mix with each other And love each other2 2 Translation by author. 5 Table of Content Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................... 11 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 12 Methodological account ........................................................................................... 14 Reflection on role as researcher ................................................................................ 17 Quality & ethics ........................................................................................................ 19 Outline ...................................................................................................................... 21 Chapter 1: Globalization, identity & difference .......................................................... 22 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 22 Globalization: An anthropological approach ............................................................ 22 Globalization and identity construction .................................................................... 25 The understanding of difference and otherness ........................................................ 28 Scapes and contact zones of the global cultural economy........................................ 30 Chapter II: Changing diversity in Palermo, Sicily ....................................................... 32 Sicily: geography, history, and the North/South division ........................................ 32 Italy’s unusual case of migration .............................................................................. 34 Ballarò, a Palermitan streetmarket as scene of negotiating difference ..................... 35 Chapter III: The rhythm of Ballarò .............................................................................. 38 Position Palermo è Ballarò, Ballarò è Palermo ........................................................ 38 Daily activities .......................................................................................................... 40 Organisation Dove il mercato regolare si mescola col mercato irregolare... ............ 44 Protagonists .............................................................................................................. 45 Chapter IV: Local identity ........................................................................................... 48 Shifting boundaries ................................................................................................... 48 The ‘cultural stuff inside’ ......................................................................................... 52 Family Siamo tutti parenti ..................................................................................... 53 Religion ................................................................................................................. 55 Pink and black La Rosanera al cuore .................................................................... 57 6 Chapter V: Changes ..................................................................................................... 60 Disembedding ........................................................................................................... 60 Movement ................................................................................................................. 62 Re-embedding ........................................................................................................... 64 Mixing Quando un Pakistano parla nel dialetto Palermitano, è fighissima.............. 66 Chapter VI: The Politics of Difference ........................................................................ 69 Understanding the Other ........................................................................................... 69 Postcolonial equality................................................................................................. 71 Joking relationships .................................................................................................. 73 Chapter VII: Concluding remarks ................................................................................ 76 Bibliography ................................................................................................................ 80 Appendix ...................................................................................................................... 87 Glossary .................................................................................................................... 87 Summary in Italian – Sommario in Italiano ............................................................. 90 7 Figure 1. Map of Sicily, Palermo, and the Strait of Sicily in between the European and African continent. Map from http://www.wikiwand.com/nl 8 Figure 2: Map of Ballarò and the other historical neighborhoods and their markets of Palermo. Orange indicates the Ballarò, located in the neighborhood Albergheria, pink indicates the market of Capò, red indicates the market of Vucciria. The numbers refer to specific locations such as organizations within Albergheria. On ballarothesis.wordpress.com/2017/06/17/where-is-the- market-of-ballaro/ you can find additional information on each of these locations. Map drawn up from myself. 9 10 Acknowledgements ‘But how on earth did you end up in Ballarò?’ Honestly, I did not really have an answer to all those times I was asked this question. I knew Sicily only from stories; the apparent beauty from my dear Italian friends, the mafia from the mythical movies, the tragedy of thousands of refugees arriving at the shores from the newspapers, the Southern Question from Antonio Gramsci. My interest in postcolonial studies, Italy’s Nord/South division, and the worrying refugee situation unfolding at the shores of Sicily miraculously led me to a market in Palermo where all these elements intersected. Nothing however could have prepared me for the passion that was immediately sparked within me once I first set foot on the slippery ballate of the market of Ballarò. It has been an honour to conduct my first anthropological fieldwork experience here, which has undoubtedly been the highlight of my bachelor Cultural Anthropology at the University of Utrecht. This thesis is the product of these ten weeks of fieldwork, in which I humbly present Ballarò’s stories of tradition and integration. First and foremost, I would like to thank all my informants. Without their Palermitan accoglienza, passion, and personal stories, this would not have been an anthropological thesis. Furthermore, I would like to thank some people in particular. My friends Giovanni, Virginia, and Francesca, who, in an incredibly short amount of time, made me feel at home in Palermo and fall in love with Sicily. My mother, who has always been involved and supporting. Bram, with whom I was able to share the magic of Palermo for a couple of days and who patiently lent an ear to all my never ending, passionate stories. And finally, Gerdien Steenbeek, who has been so much more than a supervisor; uplifting and motivating, yet critical and constructive throughout the whole research
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