National Social Assistance Policy and Territory: Enigmas of the Path

Based on concepts developed by David Harvey, this essay analyzes if and to what extent a focus and concentration on the category of territory in the realm of current national social assistance policy is an institutional innovation. It questions if it is capable of establishing guidelines for the implementation of policies that confirm social assistance's status as a public policy, as established by the Federal Constitution of 1988 and the Organic Social Assistance Law. The paper briefly reviews the historic presence of the spatial dimension in social assistance actions that confront the social question, indicating the initiation of the recognition of the importance of territory. In conclusion, it analyzes key elements needed for the "citizen-territorialization" of public policies, related to participation and social control