Multisensory boundaries and the spatial agency of racialised residents in Parma.

This study investigates the racialisation of urban spaces in Parma,an Italian city, through embodied experiences of Black individualswith immigrant backgrounds. Using walking conversations, itexamines how sensory cues interact with public discourses toracialise urban environments, shaping perceptions of inclusionand exclusion. Media narratives amplify discomfort among long-term residents of Italian origin by associating sensory markerslinked to immigrant presence with degradation and insecurity,transforming these spaces into contested sensory landscapes.Conversely, racialised individuals navigate these spaces withexperiences from exclusion to cultural affirmation, which canboth reinforce and challenge racialised representations. The studyunderscores the agency and resistance of racialised residents,who adopt tactics such as renaming spaces and engaging insensory practices to reclaim urban environments. By adopting amultisensory approach, it deepens understanding of howracialised boundaries are produced, experienced, and contested,offering a framework for exploring race–space dynamics.