The Aftermath of Counterinsurgency

This chapter discusses contemporary social, economic, and political instability in Barrancabermeja, where the war continues by other means. It explores how the dirty war produced an unstable social “order” that rested on a foundation of disorder in which radical uncertainty and continuing violence undermined working people’s ability to establish control over their lives. In the absence of common memories about the past and disagreement about the causes of persistent violence in the present, the chapter explores how working people struggle anew on a fragmented social terrain to rebuild relationships to each other. It draws attention to the multitude of contemporary claims and concerns that shape the ongoing making and unmaking of class.