ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the decline of social movement (SM) activity in Uruguay in reference to political variables. It argues that the nature of the country's political institutions and traditions, the dynamics of negotiated redemocratization processes, and the policies of Montevideo's municipal government. The chapter explores the relationship between social movements and other political actors, without losing sight of questions of collective identity and the politics of everyday life. It suggests a more comprehensive analysis of SMs can be obtained by also exploring the institutional aspects of social movements. The chapter examines the factors that inhibited the development of social movements in Uruguay following the return to democracy in 1985. The decline of SMs cannot be understood in isolation from the overall sociopsychological and political context in the country following the return to democracy. A central characteristic of Uruguayan society has been the dominance of the state over civil society.
