Based on life-stories, in-depth interviews and informal conversations, this
article focuses on the lived experiences of the inhabitants of a slum in B
uenos Aires, Argentina. The first part of the article explores the politica
l-economic context of deepening marginalization of the slum population in c
ontemporary Argentina, paying special attention to the mutually reinforcing
processes of massification of under- and unemployment, impoverishment and
state retrenchment. The second part of the article analyses the impact of s
uch increasing marginalization on the lived experiences of slum-dwellers in
Villa Paraiso. In particular, it focuses on (a) the dominant antagonisms t
hat divide the residents of this destitute neighbourhood; and (b) the feeli
ng of social isolation and abandonment that pervades much of the reality of
slum-dwellers. The article finds some experiential similarities between sl
um-dwellers in Argentina and residents of other enclaves of urban poverty i
n advanced societies.