Paper short abstract:

Using an ethnographic methodology, we explore the existence of irregular, overlapping and fragmented trajectories between the prison and certain neighborhoods (or part of them) in the city of Montevideo, which reveal a daily experience of relegation for certain sectors of the population.

Paper long abstract:

This paper shares elements related to a research line developed within the framework of the Programa Integral Metropolitano from the Universidad de la República (PIM - UdelaR, Uruguay) in which the authors' postgraduate research also converge. From an ethnographic methodology that prioritizes the experiences of the inhabitants, we analyze exclusion processes in the city of Montevideo, where the prison and certain neighborhoods (or part of them) are considered as territories of relegation. In contrast to binary approaches to think about the relationship between prison and the city, and complexifying the idea of a territorial continuum, we explore the existence of overlapping and fragmented trajectories that reflect a daily experience of relegation for certain sectors of the population.

Beyond identifying common aspects that show the practices of stigmatization and marginalization, we intend in this paper to focus on the articulations that exist between these relegated territories in the city. Daily life in both territories presents ways of being that allow us to think of the existence of trajectories that link them in partial, diverse and intermittent articulations that we intend to characterize. The aim of this paper is to identify how these articulations have an impact on the reinforcement of confinement and punishment practices, as well as on the articulation of care and protection among those who maintain relationships in and from these territories.