Visions of hope: Reclaiming public spaces and generation of community activities in Ciudad Juárez

Abstract

In this paper, I present a description, interpretation and a series of photographs of two different social life situations experienced by a group of people in Ciudad Juárez. My main objective is to show how local people construct their sense of feeling in their effort to recover a better quality of life in this border city. On one hand, I offer a recreation of the Independence Day parade. In this context, people enjoy the civic celebration, mainly by walking the main street with a sense of freedom by “recovering” the streets and ending their walk in the main plaza, which is the main symbolic space in the City. On the other hand, the situation is concern with the struggle enacted by a group of women in order to promote the social participation in Riberas del Bravo. They are trying to improve both, individual and social life through of collective work and community activities. I discuss that both, the civic parade and the women´s social action in Riberas show signs of hope for people in Juárez. They have a strong wish of believe in an alternative way of life, different from the one based on distrust and fear.