Ephemeral Occupations: Plaza Dignidad and the Contestation of Chilean Democracy

This chapter sheds light on the temporary occupation—from October 2019 until March 2020—of the largest public space in Santiago, Chile in the name of democracy and social justice. The simultaneously real and metaphorical battle over this space transformed it into a symbol and subject of fierce political struggle reaching far beyond its own spatial contours. The Plaza Baquedano, also known as Plaza Italia, was rebaptized by the demonstrators as the Plaza Dignidad (‘Dignity Square’), identifying new relations and collaborations established among protesters during their struggle and provoking alternative models of political decision-making and democratic governance. Assuring that the ‘ephemeral’ occupation of public space could catalyse structural social and political transformation, it became a site of public debate about democratic improvements and renewed power relations between diverse social and political actors. Through in-depth interviews and mapping, this chapter will foreground and examine the personal experiences of people directly involved in the collective occupation of ‘Dignity Square’. In this way, it aims to gain insight in the role of public space as the site and subject of struggles over social justice and democracy.