Focaal—Journal of Global and Historical Anthropology 84 (2019): 47–61 © Stichting Focaal and Berghahn Books doi:10.3167/fcl.2019.840104 “Urban renewal with dancing and music”? Te renewal machine’s struggle to organize hegemony in Turkey Cansu Civelek Abstract: In 2012, an urban renewal project in Eskişehir, Turkey, was initiated with claims of “festive renewal,” challenging the theories of critical urban studies that emphasize the disruptive efects of such projects. Built on a discussion about hegemony, which deploys consent and dissent in its organization, this article eth- nographically investigates the tactics and strategies of the renewal machine that mobilized and co-opted parts of the locals into the project while invoking layers of dissent, distrust, and discomfort. Te article discusses how historically built po- litical, socioeconomic, and gender inequalities were efciently detected, reconsti- tuted, and put into the service of the renewal machine while revealing tension and dynamism behind the “festive renewal.” It shows a fragility of hegemony that is neither a given nor a completed template. Keywords: hegemony, renewal machine, Turkey, urban renewal, urban renewal projects In the summer of 2012, in one of the remain- ing gecekondu 1 gardens in the neighborhood of Karapınar (Eskişehir, Turkey), a group of women were talking about their future life in the apartments while drinking tea and watch- ing the ongoing construction in the urban re- newal zone. Tey aspired to apartment towers, which they equated with a “luxurious” lifestyle. As they thought I must live in an apartment building, they asked me about the necessities of what they imagined a “luxurious” life entails. Tey boasted about their plans for buying new furniture and clothes despite the cost. A few weeks later, during one of my meetings at the Odunpazarı municipality, ruled by the Justice and Development Party (AKP), the then mayor 2 rehashed the “magical success” of the Karapınar urban renewal project (URP). Narratives about the “win-win project,” doubled with “festive re- newal,” became the trademarks of the Karapınar URP: Tink about a situation where everybody wins. Te hallmark of this project is that this is a win-win project. Yes, we [the mu- nicipality] win as we gain political pres- tige and become a role model for Turkey. Te TOKİ [Turkish Mass Housing Ad- ministration] wins as it obtains economic return and prestige. Our people win as