Conversations in Conflict Studies: Correcting the Mistakes of the Past on the I-81 Viaduct Project

Officials across all levels of government, activists and the media have widely described the teardown of I-81 in Syracuse as a 'correction of historic mistakes,' adding political and discursive weight to a critical infrastructure project. But what does that look like in practice? What are the concrete outcomes of this commitment, which has become the calling card of the project?

This talk explores how and why this commitment came about, delving into the conflicts, compromises, and negotiations around the form that atonement would take. It argues that lofty, wide-ranging discursive anchors take on specific articulations when policy is actually enacted, revealing how those claims are contested, flexible and negotiated by stakeholders with their own visions for the city. In Syracuse, it argues that the commitment to atonement is specifically centered on four planks: community outreach, health, jobs and funding, revealing both the limits and possibilities of integrating atonement into urban development.

Aditya Srinivasan is a doctoral candidate in the Social Sciences Ph.D. Program at Syracuse University. His award-winning interdisciplinary research examines how urban development and policy are shaped by narratives, material conditions, culture, expertise and public discourse. His doctoral research interrogates these themes through a study of the Interstate 81 highway in Syracuse, New York.

This event is sponsored by PARCC and the Conflict Management Center (CMC).