Abstract
Building on a well-established tradition of anthropological scholarship on state-making, citizenship, and poverty (see Das and Poole 2004; Das and Randeria 2015; Gupta 2011, 2012; Scott 1998), Unruly Domestication: Poverty, Family, and Statecraft in Urban Peru takes readers to Pachacútec—an asentamiento humano (human settlement) or shantytown located in Ventanilla district in Callao, Peru. The book critically examines how poverty is socially constructed at state, community, and individual levels. Central to author Kristin Skrabut’s argument is the notion that poverty is not merely a condition of economic deprivation, but a construct shaped by political, cultural, and gendered dynamics. The author situates poverty—as both an official category and a lived experience—within a broader framework of politics, gender relations, and moral discourse. This approach emphasizes how poverty governance depends on contested notions of entitlement and need, determining who is considered “deserving” of support and who is excluded. The classifications established through these processes, Skrabut argues, regulate access to resources while also producing moral and political hierarchies among the poor.
The book raises important questions about the role of the Peruvian state in addressing poverty through seemingly apolitical and technocratic policies, such as SISFOH (the national system of poverty focalization). Using participant observation, interviews with residents, activists, promoters, and street-level bureaucrats, as well as analysis of policies and statistical reports, the book captures the complexity of state-citizen interactions. Pachacutanos—residents of Pachacútec—engage with state bureaucracies to access essential services such as health care, identity documents, and property titles. Campaigns like the Right to Identity and programs for business formalization and property titling are not just about service delivery but also shape residents’ sense of belonging. Skrabut reveals how these state initiatives, while framed as neutral tools of governance, contribute to exclusion, reinforcing the inequalities they aim to reduce. This critique challenges the assumption that anti-poverty efforts are inherently just, demonstrating how state interventions reflect and reproduce existing power structures.
The text explores various aspects of poverty governance. The opening chapter critiques the shift from viewing poverty as a narrow economic measure to a multidimensional concept shaped by development discourse. Skrabut questions the limitations of statistical tools used to classify poverty, showing how these metrics often fail to capture the realities of marginalized communities. Chapters Two, Three, and Six examine how identities are negotiated through interactions with state bureaucracies and clientelist relationships with politicians, revealing how legal frameworks governing citizenship and property influence access to resources and shape social norms, such as expectations of decency among the poor. Chapters Four and Seven focus on the strategies individuals and communities use to cope with poverty and build better futures. Skrabut highlights the importance of community networks, informal economies, and collective action, aligning with broader research on poverty that emphasizes resilience through social solidarity (see Deckard and Auyero 2022). These chapters illuminate how survival strategies involve a balance of individual agency and collective effort.
Chapter Five warrants special attention because it offers an insightful exploration of poverty governance, family dynamics, and motherhood. Skrabut revisits the feminization of poverty thesis, demonstrating how single mothers bear a disproportionate burden in managing household poverty—a role reinforced by both social programs and cultural expectations. At the same time, these women leverage their roles as self-sacrificing mothers to build political capital and assert leadership in their communities. As they interact with politicians and state actors, they navigate their identities as both mothers and community leaders, illustrating the complex ways in which gendered norms intersect with state power. Women do not only engage with but also reproduce systems of domination in these processes.
As a Peruvian scholar from Callao who studies the region, I appreciate the depth with which the book engages with the experiences of poverty, especially through the lens of women’s lives. However, I found myself wanting more clarity regarding some analytical choices and omissions. One example is the book’s translation of Peru’s lucha contra la pobreza—better translated as the “fight against poverty”—as a “war on poverty.” While Skrabut’s use of this term appears deliberate, it would have benefited from a more thorough explanation. The phrase “war on poverty” echoes terms such as the “war on crime” and the “war on drugs,” which have been employed by sociologists of crime, law, and punishment to describe U.S. policy initiatives in the 1980s and 1990s that deliberately criminalized Black and Brown communities, reinforced racial hierarchies, and exacerbated poverty in marginalized neighborhoods. Drawing on this literature could have complicated the metaphor of a “war on poverty,” highlighting the limits of its applicability to Peru, where the state’s limited enforcement capacity and low institutional legitimacy hinder its ability to wage such campaigns. This reflection could have illuminated the challenges of applying U.S.-derived frameworks to a different socio-political context.
Another area where the book falls short is in its treatment of Callao. While the ethnographic detail on local practices is rich and thoughtfully connected to state policies, the narrative overlooks the specific political and social dynamics that make Callao distinct. Throughout the text, Callao is treated as an extension of Lima, but the two places differ significantly in their political structures and relationships with the national government. Existing political analyses of Callao, although limited, have emphasized how clientelism plays a central role in shaping access to resources such as jobs, food, and public services (see Rojas 2016). By not engaging more deeply with these local dynamics, the book risks missing key insights into how poverty is constructed and sustained in Callao. A more focused examination of the region’s unique political structures would have enriched the analysis, providing a fuller understanding of how poverty governance operates in this context.
Despite these limitations, Unruly Domestication invites readers to rethink conventional understandings of poverty in urban settings. By focusing on how bureaucratic practices shape the lived experiences of Pachacútec’s residents, Skrabut contributes valuable insights to discussions on how poverty is socially constructed and contested. The book’s nuanced attention to gender dynamics—particularly its exploration of motherhood and the feminization of poverty—pushes beyond simplistic portrayals of women as passive victims, revealing their active engagement with state power and community politics. Skrabut’s ethnographic approach further enhances the book’s contribution by grounding abstract concepts in the realities of daily life, offering a vivid portrayal of the intersection between statecraft, identity, and marginalization.
This work builds on and extends existing literature on state-making, poverty, and citizenship by exposing the exclusions embedded in anti-poverty programs while also highlighting the agency of individuals navigating and reshaping these systems. For scholars interested in the intersections of governance, identity, and poverty, this book offers a rich and thought-provoking account of the everyday experiences of marginalized urban communities. Ultimately, Unruly Domestication serves both as a call to critically engage with the politics of poverty and as a reminder of the importance of centering the voices of those living on the margins.