Territórios à margem e a inércia do estado: desafios da regularização fundiária e a reprodução do estigma urbano na comunidade Santa Fé e Santa Felicidade, em Dourados-MS

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the challenges of land regularization and the reproduction of urban stigma in the Santa Fé Community, located in Dourados/MS, Brazil, situating itself within the debate on uneven urbanization in the country. Through a historical analysis, the study identifies the roots of socio-spatial segregation in processes such as post-industrialization rural-urban migration, the 1850 Land Law—which consolidated land concentration—and the abolition of slavery without inclusive policies, factors that marginalized populations and fueled informal settlements. Chaotic urbanization, marked by inefficient state planning and real estate speculation, generated precarious peripheries where land irregularity became structural. The research adopts a hypothetical-deductive and qualitative approach, combining documentary analysis, literature review, and interviews with social actors. It examines how territorial stigma naturalizes state neglect by associating communities like Santa Fé with discourses of illegality and danger. This symbolic representation legitimizes the omission of public policies, perpetuating human rights violations such as lack of access to sanitation, healthcare, and education. While Law 13.465/2017 (REURB) promotes regularization, it proves insufficient by prioritizing legal security over urban and social improvements, reinforcing the logic of the "dual city" (Maricato, 2001). The Santa Fé case study highlights the materialization of these dynamics: precarious occupations, media-driven stigmatization, and repressive state responses. The community, largely composed of improvised housing, faces cycles of exclusion fueled by the normalization of precarity. The study concludes that land regularization, to transcend its technical dimension, must integrate with multidimensional policies that combat structural inequality, promote infrastructure, and deconstruct stereotypes. The research engages with theorists such as Lefebvre (2001), whose concept of the "right to the city" emphasizes popular participation in urban space construction, and Rolnik (1997), who critiques the commodification of housing. It argues that socio-spatial inclusion requires not only land titling but also the reconfiguration of power relations dominating urbanism, prioritizing social movements and intersectoral agendas. Ultimately, the dissertation demonstrates that stigmatization and segregation stem from a historical project of exclusion, demanding epistemic and practical ruptures to transform cities into spaces of dignity and full citizenship.