Ordinary Places, Extraordinary Events: Democracy Citizenship and Public Space in Latin America

This book reveals the recent urban history of nine major Latin American cities – Mexico City, São Paulo, Santiago de Chile, Lima, Bogotá, Caracas, Buenos Aires, Havana, and Santo Domingo – through studies of their public spaces and the events that have taken place there.

 

While some argue that public spaces are a prerequisite for the expression, representation and reinforcement of democracy, equally they can be said to be used in the pursuit of totalitarianism. As the case studies here reveal, for the two opposing political visions –

democracy versus totalitarianism – public streets and spaces, in both the past and present, have been sites for the enactment and contestation of various stances on democracy and citizenship. By exploring the use and meaning of public spaces in their respective cities over time, the contributors shed light on contemporary redefinitions of citizenship and democracy in the Americas and, by extrapolation, the world.