A Time of Opportunities: The Piquetero Movement and Democratization in Argentina

Abstract

Trigered by the dep economic and social crisis that culminated in 2 001, broad popular masses took to the streets all across Argentina, protesting against the economic decline and hardship brought by the recession. Gradually giving rise to more organized social movement formations, the protest actions led to increased levels of political participation that in turn altered the face of the country’s democratic life. During the peak of the crisis, the mobilization, today known as the piqueteros movement, spread throughout the society, gaining a strong social presence and the status of an increasingly legitimate political force on the national arena. Within the past five years, the movement has become partly incorporated within the structures of governmental administration, wielding political power in social policy decisions and on the human rights platform through the organs of regional government. In this paper, I review the ways in which the movement has been able to influence the direction and outlook of politics at the local level, discussing the movement’s ability to shape governmental policy in the Province of Buenos Aires.