The young, uniformed cartoneros caught the attention of passersby in the crowd not only because of the size of the group – 35 – but because of the worker’s uniform they wore for the pilgrimage. It consists of dark blue pants and jackets lined with neon green strips for visibility. It clearly marked them as workers. The members of the MTE stood out for another reason. They conveyed a seriousness that was in contrast to the many of the chatty, smart phone-carrying teenagers. They are young workers, and they seem older than their years.

A Montevideo bill proposed for January 2014 would create “exclusionary zones” where waste pickers and their horse-drawn carts would not be allowed to enter. The bill involves not only the exclusion of waste pickers but the privatization of recyclables only accessible to so-called “authorized” parties.

El Día Mundial del Reciclaje los recicladores de Bogotá fueran a las calles para defender la dignidad y el trabajo y las conquistas, exigiendo respeto a la categoría.