Self-managed Community Development: From Nineteenth-Century Trade Unionism to Neighborhood Unionism
Keywords:
uniounism, community development, self-management, welfareAbstract
Self-managed community development has its roots in 19th-century trade unionism, influenced by the workers’ and anarchist movements. These movements not only fought for labor rights but also promoted social education as a means to strengthen class consciousness and popular autonomy. Thus, social education became a key element of solidarity and mutual aid. The crises of the State —both in the 20th and 21st centuries— reconfigured these initiatives, forcing them to adapt and evolve. This study analyzes how these dynamics are reflected in current housing and neighborhood unionism, highlighting the transformative role of social education. Based on a historical and comparative analysis, it reviewed Galician libertarian press from the late 19th century and examined the communication and organizational strategies of contemporary movements. The analysis showed that mutual aid and social education were central pillars of classical unionism, aimed at building cohesive communities. Today, housing and neighborhood unions maintain that same logic, adapted to a digital context and the crisis of the welfare state, promoting support networks and training spaces. A clear continuity can be observed in self-managed practices, although adjusted to current challenges, where social education remains a bridge between critical theory and community action.
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"El sindicato ha sido históricamente una herramienta de lucha de la clase trabajadora frente al capital, nacida como respuesta a las condiciones de explotación propias derivadas de la revolución industrial."
"La educación social, entendida como práctica pedagógica, política y transformadora, no se limita a la transmisión de conocimientos, sino que implica un proceso de concienciación y construcción colectiva de saberes a partir de la experiencia de las oprimidas."
"“Frente al modelo institucional dominante, caracterizado por una tendencia a gestionar los problemas sociales desde marcos tecnocráticos, los sindicatos de vivienda desempeñan una función crítica y contrahegemónica."
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