The São Vito Building: public power, the press and stigmatization

Abstract

Since the 1980s, various administrations at the São Paulo City Hall have contributed to an urban project for Parque Dom Pedro II, inside which, on several occasions, the São Vito building has become a public issue. This giant building of small apartments was built in the 1950s. It became established as a place of residence for a low-income population, but was demolished in 2010. The building was generally perceived as an irregular, dangerous occupation, whereas it was in fact inhabited mainly by owners and formal tenants. The social construction of this stigma, contributed to by the local press, was fundamental in justifying two public intervention attempts on the building, during the 1980s and 2000s. This relatively recent case, although already somewhat forgotten, demonstrates that notions often reproduced as “common sense” are in reality carefully elaborated, incurring on the naturalization of ideas that are not consensual.

Keywords:
Urban Renewal; São Vito Building; Stigmatization and Criminalization of Poverty; the Press and Public Policies; São Paulo