Vulnerable communities: a right to the city

Abstract

The essay approaches social issues and dynamics involving vulnerable communities in the downtown area of São Paulo, such as the so-called "Cracolândia". The discussion about the urban process that originated these communities, emphasizes its relationship with the structural conflicts in São Paulo and the logics of sociospatial segregation, bringing the housing issue at "Luz", marked by occupations, pensions and tenements, and the need to implement quality social housing in the downtown area. David Harvey’s concept “Right to the city” was selected as an essential idea to understand the vulnerable community dynamics in the city center and their right to housing in this context of conflicts among various agents. The article’s conclusion is an example of a search for the right to the city, an urban and social project by the collective "Fórum Aberto Mundaréu da Luz", called "Campos Elíseos Vivo". The project proposes, in a participative process, a new way of living and working in the neighborhood, without the violence of removals and demolitions, aiming at the creation of new dynamics and opportunities for vulnerable communities.