Despite the fortification of buildings, streets, and public squares, Rio de Janeiro's beaches remain widely regarded as democratic spaces of social diversity and accessibility. Our study revisits the question of Rio's “democratic” beachfronts, based on local interviews, field observations, official reports, and newspaper accounts. We focus on historical and contemporary perceptions of planning, privatization, and public‐order programs on the city's southern seaside. Institutional discourses have justified increasing regulation to combat threats of disorder and insecurity. While residents value the relative openness of beachfronts, they also acknowledge issues of safety, social segmentation, and subtle forms of bias. The public generally applauds recent “Shock of Order” policing and commercial revitalization, although critics lament the loss of traditional freedoms for informal beach vendors and casual sports. These paradoxes highlight enduring tensions between social order and hierarchy on one hand, and democratic rights and equality on the other.

尽管建筑物，街道和公共广场已设防，但里约热内卢的海滩仍然被广泛认为是具有社会多样性和可及性的民主空间。我们的研究基于当地访谈，实地观察，官方报道和报纸报道，重新审视了里约“民主”海滨地区的问题。我们专注于历史和当代对城市南部海边规划，私有化和公共秩序计划的看法。机构话语已证明增加监管以应对混乱和不安全威胁是合理的。尽管居民重视海滨的相对开放性，但他们也承认安全，社会分化和细微形式的偏见问题。公众普遍赞扬最近的“秩序冲击”治安和商业振兴，尽管批评家为非正式的沙滩摊贩和休闲运动丧失了传统自由而感到遗憾。这些悖论一方面突出了社会秩序与等级制之间的持久张力，另一方面突出了民主权利与平等之间的张力。