Infância, pandemia e desigualdades socioterritoriais na Região Metropolitana de Belo Horizonte

Abstract

This study seeks to discuss how socio-spatial inequalities that cross the experiences of Brazilian children had repercussions over the context of the pandemic, particularly on their relations with the territorial dimension and recreation. Analyses were carried out based on listening to children, ages 8 to 12, in the metropolitan area of Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais, Brazil). Through data generated from a virtual questionnaire, photographs, and remote interviews, we reflect on how the pandemic reiterated historical inequalities and on how the diversity of children’s experiences was affected during social isolation, confronting the analyses of different territorial conditions and associated vulnerabilities. Affirming the recognition of children’s otherness and considering them as full-fledged social actors, we seek to reflect on their ability to build consistent interpretations about their experiences and the sanitary and social crisis.