Strategies against territorial stigmatization. An ethnographic research in a southern neighborhood of Santiago, Chile

Abstract

This article discusses the results of an ethnography carried out in a disadvantaged neighborhood located in Santiago, Chile. The purpose of the research was to know the strategies used by its residents to address territorial stigma. The results reveal that they respond to the stigma by building symbolic differences that allow them to distinguish themselves from the rest, by applying to others the stigmas they receive from the outside. This strategy is used in the comparison with people from the same neighborhood and when comparing with similar quarters, being noteworthy that it is not carried out with people or neighborhoods from other socio-economic groups. It is concluded that the force of phenomenon like stigmatization and socioeconomical segregations makes it difficult for them to build an image of themselves that values them, without resorting to devaluating similar others.