Adolescents, poverty areas, violence, and public health: an intersectional perspective

Abstract

Objectives: to discuss the influence of urban poverty on the context of violence among adolescents from an intersectional perspective. Methods: the original research, of the action research type, analyzed data from 13 workshops. The participants were adolescents from both sexes, from 15 to 17 years old, from a public school in a peripheral neighborhood of São Paulo, SP. The methodological proposition of intersectional analysis guided the interpretation of the empirical material. Results: the intersection of class and gender may increase the (re)production of violence in some men. The intersection of race/color, social class, and territory contributes to the construction of narratives that naturalize inequality and, thus, justify discrimination. Final Considerations: there is necessity of new public policies that consider the social contexts and experiences of the subjects that stem from the articulation of social markers.