Exploring inclusion through urban rituals: The case study of the Fieris Féeries Parade in Seraing, Belgium

Urban festivals often aim for greater inclusion of all the inhabitants of a city or a neighbourhood by bringing them together during the preparation of the event and during the period of the festival. More generally, authors argue that, because of their ritualising nature, urban festivals imply informal practices of inclusion (Gamba et al. 2022). Nevertheless, urban festivals can also make use of ostensibly exclusive narratives - take, for example, the Aalst Carnival in Belgium, known for its antisemitic procession - while at the same time having an inclusive power with regard to participants who adhere to the narrative conveyed or to the festival’s traditions. Where public policies focus on language learning and the employability of people from abroad, they too often ignore the role that arts, sport, festivities and other everyday or occasional artistic and cultural practices can play (Barsky & Martiniello 2021). In this contribution, we look at the inclusive and exclusive potentials of a Belgian urban festival with stated inclusive objectives (in terms of diversity, disabilities, vulnerable people, etc.). We are particularly interested in its openness to newcomers and to people with immigrant background. Through ethnography and the use of visual methods, we analyse the narrative, the preparation involving citizens and the performance of the festivals in terms of their inclusive/exclusive potential. In this way, we can take a closer look at the role of culture in the inclusion of migrants by focusing on the specific artistic and cultural medium of urban rituals.