Direito à Cidade e Direito ao Trabalho: Uma Análise das Formas de Circulação dos Mototaxistas de Niterói, Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

The concept of the right to the city was first defined by Lefebvre in a work written in 1968, analyzing the French demonstrations that took place at that time and proposing that the urban space should be occupied and built by all, including marginalized groups. This article aims to analyze this theory taking into account the local cosmologies and the forms of appropriation carried out according to the empirical context of Niterói. In other words, the purpose is to reflect on the forms of regulation and circulation of motorcycle cab workers in the "community" of Morro do Estado, located in the center of this municipality. From the ethnography carried out, it was observed that the intention of these agents was, above all, to have the right to work and to the market, having, with this, their identity as a worker recognized before all society. However, in order to have these rights contemplated, these individuals must first have the right to be and occupy the city. In Niterói, after a period marked by increased social inequality, the last municipal administration tried to use a discourse based on the moral grammar of the "right to the city" when it comes to ways of managing urban space. But, from the observation of the empirical case in question, it can be seen that this city project is not for everyone, at least not equally. Therefore, when thinking about the right to the city in Brazil, besides taking into account material inequalities, it is also necessary to consider the inequality in access to rights in our legal system.