The appropriation of public space in the Gasca community
The appropriation of public space in the Gasca community

A battered star

Author(s): Alejandra Ojeda Sampson
Subject(s): Geography, Regional studies
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: appropriation; public space; community;violence affected;
Summary/Abstract: The community of Gasca is a rural town that has little basic equipment, urbanization and adequate infrastructure, and few opportunities to access well-paid jobs. Under this context, many members of the community have been involved in illicit activities such as the theft of fuel – locally called “huachicol” – and the drug addiction of the youth, leading to violence inside it and physical deterioration of the public space. These groups are preventing the community from living the public space to reconfigure or conform, thereby causing a weakening of the social tissue and a decrease in community life. The community is proud of its squares and its patron saint festivities. Given this, its recovery is proposed through its redesign and the incorporation of cultural and recreational activities. Likewise, capacity building workshops for self-employment and generation of family businesses are proposed. Families are expected to reconstitute as a community, helping to reduce violence and drug addiction. This research was a documentary and field investigation with ethnographic techniques. The research method was the dialectic-criticism. Semi-structured interviews, site readings and documentary reviews were carried out. The main categories that provided the basis for the interviews and site readings were selected. With all this, the interpretations that give substance to the work presented were built.

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