Community resistance and the inclusive city: Devising strategies in São Paulo

Abstract

The global call for inclusive cities suggests that all residents should have equal access to the benefits of urban life. Across cities, however, displacement and lack of affordable housing segregate urban residents and limit their access to power, resources, and opportunities. Though social movement literature has long assessed how movements influence officials for reform from the outside, scholars of governance argue that civil society must act from the inside to achieve political and territorial inclusion. Here I ask whether movements confronting removals in São Paulo implement direct strategies and, if so, what are the factors that shape why movements choose direct over indirect strategies. I find that an ideology based on rights encourages direct strategies, but a radical perspective or a weak relationship with the state instead pushes movements toward activities that promote indirect influence. Networking across movements is key for increasing the capacity of movements to access new democratic institutions.

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