Diffusion Strategies and Prefiguration Cycles in Squats in France, from the 1990s to the Present

A growing body of work focuses on prefigurative politics (Autin, 2017; Fourment, 2021; Graeber, 2002; Yates, 2015). These forms of engagement go beyond the traditional, state-centric definition of the political (Tilly et al., 2008). To avoid reducing their scope to what Riba (2018) calls "utopian substitutionism," it is essential to consider the conditions that enable the dissemination of these practices over time and space (Van de Sande, 2022; Yates, 2015; Wright, 2020).

What strategies do groups engaged in prefigurative politics use to facilitate their diffusion and expansion? How are these strategies constructed and adapted, and what effects do they have on the practices themselves?

This paper addresses these questions by focusing on the case of squats in France from the 1990s to the present. The research is based on an ongoing doctoral thesis and multi-sited ethnography. Thirty-three squats across four cities were intermittently observed, while six others were studied through three years of participant observation between 2018 and 2023 (Seim, 2024). Additionally, around fifty interviews were conducted with squatters, and public archives, as well as self-produced documents, were consulted.

The paper compares two distinct cycles of prefigurative politics within squats, showing how these cycles are embedded in dissemination strategies targeting the media, political institutions, and the academic field. The first cycle, initiated by "artist squats" in the late 1990s, illustrates successful diffusion dynamics: some squats became models and proliferated. Through negotiations with public authorities, several obtained temporary occupancy agreements, achieving some degree of institutionalization (Aguilera, 2012; Prujit, 2003).

I then explore how these strategies impact prefigurative practices. Squatters often modify their practices to meet external expectations, influenced by neoliberal pressures (Foucault, 2004; Hajek, 2020). In response, some squats redefine their strategies, showing how prefigurative cycles can exhaust and give rise to new ones.