Youth and Mobilizations in Latin America: 20 Years of Persistence and Prominence

Abstract

In the last 20 years in Latin America, there have been numerous mobilizations that have energized social and political conflicts and have shaken public agendas. In most of these mobilization processes, young people were active protagonists, propelling organizations, collectives, and movements, and occupying and resignifying public spaces of many main Latin American cities.In this article, we address the main characteristics of the youth mobilization and organization processes of the last 20 years. The guiding hypothesis of this text is that the most important features that delineate the generational configurations of politics in the region are expressed there and that considering the manners of youth participation is essential to understand the characteristics, dynamics, and meanings of this process.