CRASSH

Informality: Re-Viewing Latin American Cities

Session 1: La Salada, Buenos Aires 

Martín Di Peco ( Universidad de Buenos Aires )

Performing duality. A commentary on Morenadas in La Salada trade fair, Greater Buenos Aires, Argentina

This essay tries to analyze certain phenomena of La Salada trade fair through the celebration of Morenadas, a dance and music performance that is also a political artifact.
Morenadas will be used to explore certain Salada fair ambivalent paradoxes (certain event and its opposite happening at the same time) such as: fake / original; local / global; permanent / ephemeral; legal / informal; aesthetic / political.
I will also argue that La Salada exists, works and persists over time through “performance”. This is to say that La Salada´s “intelligence” is defined by its “knowing by doing”; improvising and changing on the spot, according to immediate experience. 
I will be referring to the aesthetic use of the word performance, i.e. a theatrical piece, but also to its non-artistic use, i.e. the way in which something functions. Thus, this essay will focus not only in some aesthetic aspects of the Morenadas, but also in the social, political and economical weight they carry, in a particular place and time: Greater Buenos Aires post 2001-2002 crisis. 

Juan Pablo Scarfi (University of Cambridge)

Challenging classical political notions on informality: The case of La Salada fair in Great Buenos Aires

In this presentation, I will thus argue that La Salada fair as a political -and social- phenomenon has challenged the traditional set of political and social categories we often use to analyse informality, territorial control and resistance. First, it questions the organisation of the modern State, seen as the national entity that monopolises the legitimate exercise of violence and controls the territorial space of the nation. Second, it challenges the classical binary distinction, originally addressed by the so-called dependency theory, according to which the world economy -as well as any national metropolis- is structured along the division between great and developed centres of economic production and peripheral economies which depend largely on them for their maintenance. Third, it challenges our structural, binary and dialectical understanding of modern societies, putting structural divisions, such as capitalists and workers, efficient capitalist mass production and informal and  artisan production of a smaller scale, into question. Drawing on Gilles Deleuze’s understanding of modern societies, I will examine the extent to which La Salada, instead of being the product of internal contradictions of Argentine politics and society, it operates spatially as a way of escaping from them.  

Dr. Ester Schiavo (Quilmes's National University),  Lic. Sergio Rodríguez (NCSIT-CONICET),  Lic. Paula Vera (NCSIT-CONICET)

The paradox between the informality and the social inclusion in metropolitan cities The case of the fair “La Salada” in Buenos Aires

Informality is a forceful feature in the cities of Latin America and the Carib (LAC), it has been growing to the rhythmof its population which nowadays reaches 79,4 % (CEPAL, 2009) and in turn, it unfolds itself acquiring different forms in all of the urban activities and social sectors. This complex phenomenon is a product of the interaction of multiple social actors. In effect, public organizations, corporate private interests, organizations of the civil society or, simply, citizens who lead different initiatives, are exposing new manners of informality, which do not limit themselves to aspects related to the urban infrastructures but also they show questions related to governance and social inclusion. 

In this context, it must be ask about the characteristics that the social inclusion acquires in informal contexts. To such an end there will analyze the case of the fair La Salada, which is located in the periphery of the city of Buenos Aires and considered the LAC's biggest informal market, both for the volume of the business and for its precariousness with regard to the legal regulations (European Commission, 2006; United States Trade Representative, 2007). Though this fair forms part of an important productive system, its particularity lies in exceeding the strictly commercial question, orientating good number of its actions to satisfy social demands, which, with the time, it has driven to strengthen the bows of this community. This way, the deficient presence of the State in the area, added to the economic success of the fair and the multiple social and cultural enterprises have driven to the generation of an autonomy project tending to create a new local government in the district where it is located.

Session 2: Segregation, Participation and Symbolic Action

Gabriela Egaña (University College of London)

Ethnic segregation as socio-economic segregation: Latin American immigrants in Santiago of Chile

The emigration from Latin America to other countries has increased in the last twenty years. The most frequent destinations were USA and Europe (particularly Spain and Italy), but the restrictive migration rules in these countries have turned migrants to new destinations within Latin America, such as Chile. In this context, Chile has important advantages in the regional scenario, for example: political and economic stability, less immigration control and cheaper travel time-cost than traveling to Europe. For these reasons, Chile has considerably increased its number of immigrants.  However,  data on the census shows that foreigners in the country represent only 2% of the total population (INE 2002). The number is lower in comparison to Europe, yet it is interesting considering the fast ascending rate of foreign population concentrated in the capital city, Santiago. This papers explains the ethnic distribution of urban segregation in Santiago, linking it with integration processes.

Urban segregation is traditionally defined as the existence, in the same urban space, of different groups living unconnected to one another (Massey and Denton 1988: 282).  The definition of integration is the degree in which a minority is inserted within the dynamic of general society (Murdie and Ghosh 2010:296). Based on ethnographic information, data from the national census and theoretical research, I will develop the argument that  ethnic urban segregation in Santiago is not as relevant factor as social segregation is. I will argue that the low integration of immigrants into the local population is due to social segregation. A way to address the problems caused by such low integration could be the concentration of public policies on the improvement of foreigners' civil rights; such as protection from discrimination, social benefits and the right to vote.

Ingrid Carolina Vargas D. (Universidad de Granada), Eduardo Jimenez M. (Universidad de Málaga), Alejandro Grindlay M. (Universidad de Granada), Carlos Alberto Torres T. (Universidad Nacional de Colombia)

Processes of Participative Neighbourhood Improvement in InformalSettlements: Integration proposals in Ibagué (Colombia)

Rapid urban growth has caused, among other things, the increase in number of informal settlements in Latin American peripheries. In many cases, an increasing inequality results in socioeconomic residential segregation, generating gaps among the different groups of a community. This phenomenon is expanding in Latin America.

In cities of considerable size, experiences from some integration and careful interventions with the existing urban structure – neighbourhood improvement plans – are mostly enriching. The Favela Bairro - Rio de Janeiro  programme, the PUI - Medellin, the MIB - Bogota or Chile Barrio have had enough budget and financing possibilities. However, what kind of strategies should be used in intermediate increasing cities, with low financing possibilities and limited budget?

This paper presents a research in progress which analyzes the development of these processes in the intermediate city of Ibagué, Colombia. It tries to find some applicable strategies derived from a University Cooperation Project. The research establishes an approach to the aspects that contribute towards the formation of informal settlements and its possible links to socioeconomic residential segregation. It also studies, by using “Las Delicias” neighbourhood as reference, the development of slum areas in Ibagué. 

Based on a University Cooperation Project, the research concludes proposing a neighbourhood improvement plan for integration of those slum areas. These strategies involve the community and their organizations, the local  administration –the city council – and inter-university cooperation.

Session 3: Informality, Coexistence and Conflict

Lila Oriard Colin (UCL)

Spatial co-existence:informal street markets in Mexico DF formal downtown

Formal and informal are part of a unique and complex spatial reality which functions under two distinct (but interacting) economic and normative logics.
The formal city is framed by recognised institutions, juridical codes and planning practices organised to respond to a double and contradictory objective: support the modern « capital intensive » economy and to cover the needs of the population (housing, employment, services, etc.). This kind of city economic organisation tends to increase costs (especially labour ones) to firms as it requires great intervention of the State to cover the social needs. This spatial organisation follows the principles of economic efficiency (i.e. Le Corbusier living machine). 
The informal city emerges as an answer to the formal (modern) contradictions and paradoxically it feeds from them. It reflects in space the logic of the informal economy which is based on small and frequently family units working on a basis of deregulated and under-qualified labour which requires small capital investments. Some of the factors that influence the emergence of the informal economy are unemployment, lack of help from the State to cover social needs, the degradation of the formal labour markets, and the expansion of capitalism itself.  The logic of informality is promoted mainly by small social and economic groups finding creative ways to improve their living conditions. City deregulation is essential to open spaces to some extent to the informal economy which absorbs some of the effects and contradictions of capitalism. Paradoxically, opening “flexible spaces” (physical and political spaces) in the city to informality has shown to be a double sided phenomenon. This paper explores the city organisation as the coexistence of regulation and deregulation logics expressed in the same territory, using as an example the Mexico City centre process of renewal and the contemporary re-emergence of the informal street markets in the main streets. 

Session 4: Theorising Informality 

Jean Martin-Caldieron (Florida Atlantic University)

Topophilia in a Venezuelan Unauthorized Settlement

This article presents the findings of a housing improvement research study of an  Unauthorized Settlement in Caracas. In this urban community, inhabitants self-  build shelters depending on their changing needs and their own decisions. The  objective of this research is to discuss the reason why people feel satisfied living  in this settlement.   The settlements called “La Dolorita” is located in the Eastern suburbs of Caracas,  it is a good example of the hundreds of Unauthorized Settlements there are in  the Venezuelan capital.  Inhabitants in the sector have been self-improving their shelters year by year.  However, one of the problems is the long time the improvement process may  need to be completed.    An important factor in the self-improvement process is the householder satisfac-  tion with the shelter and the neighborhood. Topophilia (from Greek: topo: place  Philia: friend) is the set of emotional and affective relations that link a person to a  given place. Topophilia is a common feeling of many unauthorized settlements  residents. They are attached to the neighborhood and their self-built shelters.  The neighborhood is a network of communal work, exchanges, services and  relationships that allows a minimum of security for the settlers. Unauthorized  Settlements as La Dolorita are vibrant and active. Human contacts are strong  and most of the householders feel comfortable living there. This factor influences  shelter improvement. Sometimes the settlers are satisfied with the house  because they built it, even when the house is not adequate or the self-  improvement process has not been successful.     This paper presents the results of a householder survey of more than 100  shelters in the area. Results about the householder’s opinion regarding  satisfaction and the shelter itself are presented. Elements such as vehicular  access and income are compared with the level of satisfaction of the residents.     

Dr. Axel Becerra Santacruz (UMICH)

The City of Paradoxes: AbundanCity vs. ScarCity

Different theorists are contributing to develop a more critical framework of analysis of Informality in Latin America (and in other parts of the world) beyond the normative. Some of them are: Sakia Sassen who pointed out the contrasting conditions of contemporary urban centres due to actual socio-economic model of development. Homi Bhaba explains the ambivalent model of every nation in the global south countries through the relationship of the ‘pedagogical’ to refer official projects and the ‘performative’ to refer anti-official projects. Rahul Mehrotra develops further this argument in the field of architecture; he was directly concern with the materialisation of both projects on spatial dimension. As a result, he termed ‘static’ to the space developed formally and ‘kinetic’ to the space developed informally. Felipe Hernandez and Peter Kellet concur with Mehrotra´s model which challenge to understand this phenomenon beyond formal or informal forms. In Mexico, Octavio Paz highlighted the necessity to reformulate Mexican culture negotiating all its contradictions and accepting all the implication of its hybrid nature. 

Being inspired by previous critic’s arguments this paper suggests a model of analysis of Mexican cities with contrasting and dichotomous conditions or other cities with similar characteristics termed The City of Paradoxes which is integrated by AbundantCity and ScarCity. The former refers to the space developed by the westernised approach based on prescribed design process and commodisation of natural, human and economic resources. The second term refers to the space developed under conditions of scarcity, due to different limitations, the design processes is developed by non-prescriptive design process. The main focus here is to highlight a comparative of amount of resources consumption of opposite design processes used to approach the built environment. Consequently, this paper suggest to identify distinctive features and principles of the ScarCity’s model beyond and understanding of them as aesthetic, stylistic or tectonic approaches only and to see them as social, economic, environmental and technical principles that may inform the design process towards sustainability. 

Dr. Mark Bartlett (Open University)

Adaptive Strategies of Everyday Life In Public Spaces

Drawing on Henri Lefebvre’s theory of everyday life and methods of visual anthropology, my presentation will examine the remarkable diversity of inventive strategies by which public spaces are re-appropriated by those forced to operate ‘outside’ yet simultaneously ‘alongside’ dominate social, economic, political, and cultural norms. Because my analytic focus is an abstraction, adaptive strategies of everyday life, I will aim to show as wide a range of images as time allows, in order to demonstrate the richness of the “scrappy” innovation and resourcefulness of social life in the margins, as performed in public spaces like markets, zocalo’s, sidewalks, streets, and nonsites like abandoned lots, easements, train aisles, and the indiscernible territory of city ‘edges.” Another of my aims is to complicate the too easily invoked antinomy between “urban” and “rural,” to demonstrate how these categories are often hybridized. Everyday life in the “city” is often a messy amalgam of urban and rural adaptive strategies. Some of the objects of my study are vehicles, temporary or mobile structures, furniture, display, arrangements and orientations, performance, and methods of facilitating exchange. My analysis will be nomadic, moving between San Francisco, Mexico City, Oaxaca, Tiajuana, Cuenca, Quayaquil, Quito, Lima, La Paz, and other places. I will tame this fabulous unruliness through developing a typology of vernacular, adaptive strategies, and diagrams that map the diversity of publics that coexist and sometimes, interact. Social divisions are often negated in such places, and there is much to learn there about how they often are, in fact, overcome, at least momentarily, in the nebulous zone of everyday life. 

 Return to top

 Print Page