From IBList User:
With Earth in Thrall to the mega-corps, those that didn't want to sell their souls to the Corps don't appear to have much choice but to find a home in the cracks. With the return of magic, the mega-corps found themselves challanged by older forces, but still those in the streets found themselves oppressed by the powerful

Unles you could fight back, had the skills, or brawns, to make a life for yourself in the Shadows...