Stratum 1, stratum 6: how Colombians speak of themselves
divided into social classes
Arturo Wallace
BBC Mundo, Bogota (@bbc_wallace)
September 24, 2014
AFP
I had about a month of living in Colombia when I received the certification that, at least as
far as Bogota is concerned, I am four.
Strictly speaking, the classification does not apply to people, but to housing; In my case to the
apartment that since then I occupy in the neighborhood of Chapinero.
And the certificate of marras, which originates in the system of cross­subsidies under which
public utilities operate here, was really nothing more than the bill for electric service.
By then, however, I understood that for Colombians, the number between one and six that
appears monthly in the receipts of water, electricity and gas is not limited to indicate the rate that
corresponds to each house.
It is also a constant reminder of the place that each occupies ­ or is supposed to occupy ­ in
Colombian society.
"The classification power of stratification marks the identity of Colombians to the point that, when
looking for company, the stratum is placed (in personal ads) alongside sex, physical structure or
age," says sociologist Consuelo Uribe Mallarino.
According to the researcher, who has worked on the subject for years, stratification has become
"the predominant way in which Bogota and urban Colombians in general think about social
order."
And I have always thought that stratum four is probably the most appropriate for the
correspondent of a public medium that prides itself on being balanced.
BBC WORLD SERVICE
"The stratum was noticed"
Let me explain: differentiated rates by strata are the basis of the system of cross subsidies to
public services that began to be applied in Colombia in the 1980s.
Under this scheme, the inhabitants of the most humble houses ­ classified in strata of one to
three ­ pay the services for a value less than they really cost.
And with the most luxurious houses happens the opposite.
That means that the inhabitants of the households of strata five and six subsidize the public
services of the poorest settlers.
While the four­tier homes ­ like my apartment ­ pay the services at their real cost.
And not to transplant to the world of the privileged elite, but also to take advantage of the system
of subsidies designed by the Colombian State, is probably the least to be expected from the
BBC correspondent.
AFP
In addition, in the Colombian society the strata also carry a very important symbolic load.
"The law says that it is the residences that are stratified, but it has been generalized that people
are thought to be stratified," explains Consuelo Mallarino.
"And this has spread to their places of study, to the parks, to the way they talk," adds the
researcher.
As a result, people have also come to associate strata with behaviors, attitudes and even
particular values.
Thus, it is not strange to hear, for example, in a tone of reproach, expressions like "The stratum
was noticed!", To denounce behavior considered vulgar or inappropriate.
And I still remember a conversation, captured in the air in a bar "stratum 18" in the north of
Bogota, in which some friends commented scandalized the relationship of a classmate with "a
noviecita stratum three".
AFP
Caste system?
Stratum 18 does not actually exist. And, in spite of what many believe, the classification also
does not apply to educational centers or commercial premises.
But Colombians use these and other hyperbole ­ as "stratum 00" ­ to refer to the extremes of a
society that is still among the most inequitable on the planet.
Obviously, neither the social inequalities nor the custom of linking behaviors, attitudes and
values with social classes, are something exclusively Colombian.
And, in fact, the use of expressions such as "naco", "cholo" or "indio" ­ in Mexico, the Andean
region or Central America ­ to describe pejoratively the popular classes carries a load of racism
that should make them even more shocking than The Colombian strata system.
But the existence of an official nomenclature to highlight social difference ­ a kind of caste
system accepted by all and organized by the state ­ is not without its impact.
At least for the newcomers to Colombian lands. Because the Colombians already seem to be
accustomed.
AFP
"We Colombians have naturalized the strata as a way of dividing the cities. It seems normal, that
have always existed, that is a system that is used in all parts of the world," confirms the
academic Uribe.
"Only when one sees him with the eyes of a foreigner does he strike one, that one as a
Colombian asks himself: is this right or not?", He reports.
Everyone in their place
Uribe Mallarino is the Vice Chancellor of Research at the Javeriana University and has
investigated the strata in Colombia in terms of its effects on social inclusion, so talking with her
about the subject is fascinating.
In his view, despite some problems, the system has been effective in targeting subsidies.
But it has also had indirect consequences that make the search for other mechanisms desirable.
"We have so many things that divide us, so much social inequality, that we really need a public
policy that deepens those differences?" Asks Uribe.
Because, according to the sociologist, one of the material consequences of the system of strata
is that it has led to greater socio­spatial segregation in the cities of the country, making it
increasingly difficult for the different social classes to find themselves in the same space.
AFP
The problem is that in focusing subsidies on residences, not on income, the strata system has
given the social difference a clear spatial dimension that has ended up marking and segregating
the territory, explains the sociologist.
And, in a way, it has also encouraged the residents to stay "where they belong".
Uribe says that when several studies have asked people to move strata if they won the lottery,
most respond "no", because everything would become more expensive.
"There is no incentive to move from stratum, nor to improve residence, because there is a risk
that they will reclassify the stratum and end up paying more," explains the sociologist.
Looking for a change
In the case of Bogotá, that makes the people of the lower strata concentrate on the outskirts of
the city, in the farthest part.
And clear spatial segregation certainly also helps to make class origins even more recognizable:
many Colombians need only know in which zone or neighborhood of their city a person lives to
locate it within the scale.
AFP
All of the above does not mean that if strata did not exist, class inequality would disappear.
"Everywhere in the world there is a class structure that conditions the way people relate and
think to themselves," says Uribe.
"But strata constantly remind us of it, they freeze it, deepen it."
Gradually, however, in Colombia has begun to give the discussion on the need to change the
model of targeting subsidies for the payment of public services.
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And Consuelo Uribe hopes that in the near future he will no longer have to explain to other
correspondents why Colombia divides its population into strata.
"I hope that in 10 years the stratification of the residences has already been dismantled, ways
have been identified to focus on subsidies that go with the inhabitants and not with the place they
live in. And hopefully that means a greater social mix," he told BBC Mundo .
Although the problem is that so far only Bogotá is raising the discussion and the law that fixes
the strata has national character.
Meanwhile, all residents of Colombian cities have their number from one to six.
Mine is four, certainly not the tallest.
But if one considers that only 10% of the homes of Bogota deserve that classification, the truth is
that I am privileged.
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Links
Social stratification in Bogotá: from public policy to the dynamics of social
segregation
Subsidiar y Segregar: the Stratification policy and its effects on social mobility in
Bogotá
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