Breve ensaio sobre o conceito de vulnerabilidade social: exclusão social, trabalho, democracia e empoderamento

Abstract

This paper brings different concepts of the term vulnerability to provide a discussion about exclusion/inclusion in different contexts. The problem highlighted for this presentation concerns the concept of social vulnerability, a term that expresses an intermediate situation of risk of exclusion, located between extreme situations of inclusion and exclusion. We select three theoretical perspectives on social vulnerability. Pelluchon (2011) addresses vulnerability from a philosophical reflection on contemporary civilization, as an ethical foundation needed to build a notion of interdependence. On the other hand, the perspective adopted by the UN and followed by the MTE (Ministry of Labor and Employment of the Brazilian Federal Government), in partnership with the DIEESE (Inter-union Department of Statistics and Socioeconomic Studies), defines the degree of vulnerability, according to the level of physical, human and social assets that the individual holds or not. It is a dynamic and much discussed variable in the field of political and social sciences, resulting from the unequal distribution of ownership of these assets. Finally, Le Blanc (2011) discusses the contemporary feeling of vulnerability that is shared by almost all human beings and disseminates the fear of being 'landed', a last feeling of anxiety about the imminent possibility of falling or of social exclusion. The discussions and presentations put forward contribute to the search for and scope of social transformation.