Squatters in The United States and Latin America: The Discourse of Community Development

Abstract

Squatters in Third World countries have been studied extensively, while United States squatters have been largely ignored. In this paper I reject the assumptions that U.S. squatters are either too small in number, and thus, insignificant; or that information about them is common knowledge, and therefore, no data should be brought to bear on the issue. Through a content analysis of articles gathered from the New York Times dating back to 1892, I compare U.S. squatters with those in Third World countries. I find that while there are ideological similarities in terms of a desire for a better community, the strength of private property laws leads to fewer successes on the part of U.S. squatters, and stricter police enforcement. I also find that despite the existence of adverse possession laws, which are meant to allow squatters to gain land rights, it is individuals in higher income brackets who most often utilize them. Poor squatters are unable to marshal the resources needed to enter legally into the discourse of the use of space and community.

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