Raquel Rolnik has established herself as a leading voice in defending the right to housing and criticizing the financialization of urban spaces. Through her work, especially her influential book *Urban Warfare: Housing Under the Empire of Finance* (2019), Rolnik examines how housing, traditionally understood as a fundamental right, has been transformed into a financial asset within the context of globalized economies. This transformation has had profound social and urban consequences, exacerbating inequalities and making access to decent housing increasingly difficult for millions of people around the world. One of Rolnik’s most significant contributions is her emphasis on housing as a basic human right.
Throughout her career, she has defended the idea that access to adequate housing should not depend on the real estate market but should instead be guaranteed through public policies designed to meet the needs of the population, especially the most vulnerable groups. In *Urban Warfare*, Rolnik examines how, under the dominance of financialization, the housing market has been taken over by global investors who view properties not as homes but as instruments for capital accumulation. According to Rolnik, this process of financialization has had a profound impact on cities. The massive influx of financial capital into housing markets has driven up prices, making housing increasingly unaffordable for low- and middle-income households.
Real estate speculation has become a mechanism for generating rapid profits, leading to the construction of developments aimed at investors rather than local residents. This phenomenon has triggered processes of gentrification in many cities, where long-term residents are displaced due to rising rents and the acquisition of properties by investors. In her critique of real estate speculation, Rolnik also focuses on the role of governments and neoliberal policies. She argues that many public policies, rather than protecting the right to housing, have facilitated the entry of financial capital into the real estate market by promoting deregulation and creating incentives for property investment.
These policies, Rolnik contends, have prioritized the interests of global capital over local needs, contributing to urban exclusion and the displacement of the most vulnerable populations. In addition to her critical analysis, Rolnik highlights the importance of local resistance to these processes of exclusion. In many cities, social movements have played a crucial role in defending the right to housing. From land occupations to campaigns against evictions, these movements have responded to the dynamics imposed by financialization and sought to reclaim control over urban spaces.
For Rolnik, these forms of resistance are essential for building a more just and equitable model of the city. In summary, Raquel Rolnik has made fundamental contributions to the study of the right to housing and the critique of the financialization of urban spaces. Her work *Urban Warfare* offers a profound reflection on how housing has been transformed into a speculative asset, generating exclusion and inequality in contemporary cities. Through both her analysis and her activism, Rolnik calls for a rethinking of the role of public policy in protecting the right to housing, defending the idea that housing is neither a luxury nor a commodity, but an essential right for the dignity and well-being of all people.
