Producing Space and Cultural Cartographies: Ecuadorian Migrants in Madrid, Spain

Abstract

Migrants' experiences in space open a window to better understand how global dynamics of capital play out culturally, and within the local. Departing from the conviction that spatiality is a key component in asserting human rights (Lefebvre 1991; Mitchell 2003; Massey 2000; Marston 2000), how do hegemonic definitions of citizenship and immigrant in Spain and Ecuador affect migrants' perception and experiences of, as well as responses to, Madrid's urban spaces? How do Ecuadorian migrants experience and (re)make the city locally through transnational practices? To answer these questions, I use a transdisciplinary approach to analyze the cultural expressions emanating from spaces in Madrid that hold special significance in Ecuadorian migrants' everyday lives.The objectives of this dissertation are: 1) to analyze how Ecuadorians' different levels participation in Madrid's urban spaces, and the municipality's response to these practices, dialogue with definitions of citizenship, and with migrants' place in Spain and Ecuador's configurations of nationhood; 2) to show the interrelation between the material realities of Ecuadorian migrants in Madrid, access to space, and cultural production (and consumption), focusing on the historical specificity of postcolonial relations between Spain and Ecuador; 3) to document how Ecuadorian migrants are actively engaged in the urban planning of Madrid and Quito, making both cities through local transnational practices (Michael Peter Smith 2001, 2002).Altogether, this work shows how migrants are active subjects in the urban initiatives of both Madrid and Quito. Their local experiences in Madrid challenge and participate in global agendas of what a `modern' city should be, and show how definitions of `public' spaces become a most valuable resource to affirm private interests over the global city. Addressing the entwinement between transnational processes and migrants' experiences of locality this work shows how urban processes manifest culturally on both sides of the Atlantic.