shacktowns
Makeshift dwelling clusters
Shacktowns are settlements of makeshift dwellings, typically on the outskirts of cities, built by people too poor to afford conventional housing.
The structures are cobbled together from scrap wood, corrugated metal, cardboard, or whatever materials are available.
Shacktowns sprang up during the Depression.
The term emphasizes the substandard, improvised nature of such communities.
Impoverished, crowded districts
- squattersUnauthorized occupants of property
- makeshiftTemporary, improvised substitute
- destitutionExtreme poverty, lacking necessities
- impoverishedExtremely lacking in money
homeless · favelas · barrios · informal · marginalized · displacement · indigent · deprived
Established communities or agreements
- outskirtsOuter parts of town
- peripheryBoundary or outer region
- hillsidesSlanted terrain faces
- riverbanksEdges of flowing waterways
floodplains · dumpsites · encampments · clusters · sprawl · unplanned · encroachment · wasteland
Collective of connected people
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- vendorsThose who sell goods
- migrantsPeople who move elsewhere
refugees · displaced · families · children · eviction · demolition · relocation · resistance
Not regularly maintained
- lackingBeing without something
- sewageLiquid refuse in drains
- sanitationCleanliness for public health
- electricityEnergy from charged particles
pirated · standpipes · latrines · unpaved · muddy · drainage · contaminated · kerosene
slums
Impoverished, crowded districts
- squattersUnauthorized occupants of property
- makeshiftTemporary, improvised substitute
- destitutionExtreme poverty, lacking necessities
impoverished · homeless · favelas · barrios · informal · marginalized · displacement · indigent · deprived · underprivileged
settlements
Established communities or agreements
riverbanks · floodplains · dumpsites · encampments · clusters · sprawl · unplanned · encroachment · wasteland · underpass
community
Collective of connected people
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- vendorsThose who sell goods
migrants · refugees · displaced · families · children · eviction · demolition · relocation · resistance · organizing
unserviced
Not regularly maintained
- lackingBeing without something
- sewageLiquid refuse in drains
- sanitationCleanliness for public health
electricity · pirated · standpipes · latrines · unpaved · muddy · drainage · contaminated · kerosene · generators
shacktownsplanned communities
Prearranged residential neighborhoods
subdivisions · housing developments · gated communities · housing estates · residential developments
shacktownsaffluent neighborhoods
Prosperous residential districts
gated communities · upscale neighborhoods · Beverly Hills · affluent suburbs · mansions