ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on the concepts covered in the preceding chapters of this book. The book discuss the many ambivalent notions of citizenship among the upper and middle classes in the region: there is no one clear definition of citizenship, or common path to the activation of citizenship. It highlights the importance of examining the contradictory feelings and thoughts that arise from the possibility of closer relationships with the ethnic or class ‘other’. The book stresses the ambivalences of new middle-class Bolivians who reject notions of redistribution of wealth, while claiming subaltern identities in other moments. It focuses on the role of consumption and consumerism in the construction of middle- and upper-class citizenship. This is particularly true for cultural consumption, because culture can serve as a bulwark against discrimination, exclusion and racism, as well as a powerful vehicle to discuss, perform and thereby activate citizenship.
