Urban Securitization in the Name of Human Rights: Citizenship and the State in Bogotá
Speaker/Performer Name
Dr. Lindsay Mayka, Colby College
Uptown Campus
Joseph Merrick Building
Greenleaf Conference Room, 100A Jones Hall
Using the case of Bogotá, this talk examines how states draw on human rights frames in their efforts to “cleanup” violent drug-consumption zones in city centers—and the impact of these frames on citizenship rights of people within these zones, including homeless people and sex workers. Dr. Mayka shows that government adoption of human rights frames can trigger new institutional openings and strengthen discursive resources, making it easier to advance policies that violate rights. Yet, when governments adopt human rights frames, it can also create surprising opportunities for marginalized groups to resist state violence and displacement.
