Neither Revolutionary, Nor Co-opted: The Everyday Making of Popular Politics in Cartagena, Colombia, during the National Front

This chapter examines how citizens of Cartagena’s popular neighborhoods shaped political life during Colombia’s National Front. Rather than portraying popular sectors as either revolutionary actors or passive clients of the state, it shows how everyday practices—community organizing, neighborhood associations, and negotiations with authorities—produced forms of grassroots politics. In the context of rapid urban growth and housing shortages, residents mobilized to demand services, housing, and recognition. These interactions reveal a pragmatic political culture in which popular actors navigated between cooperation and contestation, thereby influencing urban governance and redefining the boundaries of citizenship and participation in mid-twentieth-century Cartagena.