The focus of the text will be to examine the struggles for representation that have taken place in the square between movements of young civic activists and the youth of Angola's ruling party. The text argues that the 1st of May square represents in the Angolan social imaginary a vital place for celebration and political contestation between antagonistic groups. The 1st of May square has been the favoured place of public visibility for young people from Angolan protest movements against public authorities, as well as a site for celebrating the gains of independence by the MPLA party, which has ruled Angola for almost fifty years. The 1st of May square is home to the statue of Agostinho Neto, considered the 'founder of the Angolan nation' as inscribed on the concrete structure that supports it. The statue is a symbol of political representation for the ruling party and expresses the meaning given to the man who proclaimed Angola's independence. But this meaning attributed to the statue is celebrated by some and contested by others, especially the self-proclaimed ‘revús’ young people who are the protagonists of the protests that have the square as their favourite place. The text essentially discusses the political disputes over the representation of antagonistic groups that take place in the square, or that have the square as a place of public reference.