The politics of remembering: Urban memory, ethnic hierarchies, and belonging in Bangkok’s oldest Catholic enclave

This article explores how an ethno-religious minority in Bangkok leverages urban memory to negotiate belonging and spatial legitimacy within racialized hierarchies. Focusing on the city’s oldest Catholic enclave, the study integrates documentary research, ethnography, and spatial analysis to examine how historical memory is reproduced through rituals, material landscapes, and genealogical narratives. Findings demonstrate that practices like Marian processions and communal food preparation sustain intergenerational belonging, while churches and royal commemorative sites anchor the community’s historical presence against redevelopment pressures. Crucially, the research identifies “hierarchical memory”—a mnemonic order where Portuguese ancestry is foregrounded for prestige while Khmer lineages are marginalized. Ultimately, the study reveals that urban memory acts as a socio-spatial mechanism, enabling minority communities to negotiate status, challenge erasure, and assert territorial claims within unequal urban environments.