Building the democratic city

Abstract

In Chile, urban social movements up until the sixties were related to the proletariat, as a workers' movement organised in central, such as the Central Unitaria de Trabajadores (CUT), as well as groups of people fighting for the right to houses. After the definitive introduction of the neoliberal project in the nineties, the new urban social movements took a leading role that has gained more force since the twenty first century. These new social movements – defined as urban – are characterised by having a multiple territorialisation, to maintain a certain condition of autonomy and internal plurality. However the urban social movements have taken a leading role recently and have expressed their discontent through visible manifestations in streets, squares, towns and vacant properties, representing, simultaneously, struggles for public space and the city conceived as a public good. This urban aesthetic and symbolical relevance is complemented by its historical importance.