Movimento de Atingidos por Barragens (MAB) no Espírito Santo: Identidade coletiva e redes sociais no contexto do desastre no Rio Doce

Abstract

This dissertation analyzes the movement Movimento de Atingidos por Barragens (MAB) in its diffusion process and arrival at the Espírito Santo after the disaster in Rio Doce, caused by the dam failure of the Samarco / Vale / BHP Billiton companies on November 5, 2015 . This context has driven the emergence of a political process of social mobilization for the rights of repair of the people affected, in the face of institutional and administrative management of conflicts by companies. In turn, MAB-ES has organized and mobilized those attained in a notorious way, whose process we seek to understand through the analysis of the role of the construction of the collective identity of affected and social networks in the MAB organization process in Espírito Santo. For this, we adopted as theoretical contribution of disaster sociology and contemporary studies of social movements by contents politics (McAdam; Tilly, Tarrow, 2001; Tilly and Tarrow, 2015) and social movement network (McAdam; Diani, 2003), assigning central attention to the cognitive and relational mechanisms implicated in the two analytical categories, respectively: the collective identity and the social networks of the movement. To achieve research objectives, the qualitative method prioritized primary data from interviews with MABES coordinators and participant observation in movement activities. In addition, documentary material collection and the use of Survey's secondary data applied in 2018, developed in the Núcleo Participação e Democracia. The systematization of empirical data occurred to the aid of Nvivo 12 Plus software for qualitative materials, and Gephi to generate the social networks analysis (SNA). It was possible to understand how MAB-ES has built the collective identity of achieved in local communities in a context of social suffering, through collective and organization awareness for their rights. For this, the cognitive mechanisms of territorial diffusion, organizational innovation and symbolic amplification were identified. We also understand, from the relational mechanisms, the role of social networks as support of the movement by its allies in the political confrontation, marked by the asymmetry of power relations with opponents. It was possible to identify MAB-ES with characteristics of centrality and intermediation from social movements and civil society organizations, and still, their process of expansion, approximation and stability of relations during 2018 to 2020. We thus seek theoretical and methodological contributions to areas Social Sciences and Political Science, contributing to the understanding of a political process of great repercussion that directly affected society.