A construção identitária dos catadores de materiais recicláveis de Icó (Ceará)

Abstract

Identity is the process that leads to the differentiation of the individual to all others, as well as the influence on the representation of the different social roles, making it similar to the one and same time. The identity of recyclable material collector is generally marked by stigmatization and exclusion, although recognition of the importance of acting as environmental agent will increasingly debated. We start from a conception in which identity is constructed through the recognition we carry forward the subjects. In this sense, this research aims to understand how is going the identity construction process of waste pickers who perform their activities in the city dump Icó in the state of Ceará. For this was used as methodology the Narratives of Life Stories, which arise as a possibility for individuals to express the various characters that make up their identities, seen here as metamorphoses in search of emancipation. Through the analysis of the narratives of three collectors in the survey, it was observed that the grooming arose primarily as an alternative against the unemployment and the possibility of personal fulfillment from the consumption of material goods. We believe that this study may cause reflections on the ways in which we recognize the collectors of recyclable materials and the implications for the lives of these subjects, as well as mark the recognition that should have by rights that are mostly denied.