'Favela Rising': a Type of Community Activism to Improve Lives in Favelas

If you haven't done it yet, I strongly recommend watching the documentary 'Favela Rising'. Other than depicting the social context and life in favelas, the documentary shows how community activism can be used as a powerful tool to improve lives within a favela. In the movie, in response to the high criminality and drug trafficking in favelas, a group of residents organizes to form social revolutionary in one of Rio's most dangerous slums.

Criminality is one of the main concerns that strongly impact the lives of the residents in favelas. To address this issue, many programs have recently tackle drug trafficking by implementing Pacific Police Units into favelas. By identifying and acting upon the major drug trafficking factions in Rio's favelas, and by promoting social and educational events for the whole community, the UPP aims at restoring pacification into the favelas, eventually improving the lives of the residents and decreasing the stigma placed upon those communities by the rest of the city.

Here's a link to the first part of the documentary:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKSuaPxYU0s

The "Area of Risk" Justification for Favela Removals: The Case of Santa Marta

http://rioonwatch.org/?p=11410

In light of the two international events, the 2014 World  Cup and the 2016 Olympics Games, Rio's favelas have been the target for projects of favela eradication and home demolitions. Rio's Mayor Eduardo Paes announced the plan of 5% reduction of favelas and demolitions of residences in 'environmentally risky area', in which most favelas are located.

This is the case for the favela Santa Marta, which for several years has been under the threat of eviction. The residents, whose homes are part of their history and identity, have organized to stop this projects, protesting and taking their fights to court.

In 2010, during the first favela removal phase, evictions were abrupt. As in the case of the favela Metro-Mangueira, residents of the favelas were left in their demolished ruins of their homes. Other than the psychological state of frustration and despair, the residents were exposed to increased risk of diseases as dengue.

Beginning in 2008, Police Pacification Units (UPP) have been implemented in many favelas. In order to create a 'safer' environment for the million of tourists estimated for the 2014 World Cup, the policy approach to urban poverty in Rio underwent a switch from 'urban upgrading' to 'pacification'. The main goal of the UPP is not to stop criminality and end drug trafficking, but instead to take back territories controlled by drug factions. Recently, bringing social services and social investments started to take place in a few favelas. As a result of this policy approach, crime rates have been significantly decreasing.

http://www.slumstories.org/episode/brazil-%E2%80%93-waiting-eviction

For my PE, I will be working with the urban poor in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Two years ago, while working for a non-profit in Salvador, Bahia I noticed an enormous wealth disparity, easily visible while walking in the city. Unlike the classical model of Latin American cities, which places the slums in the periphery, Rio de Janeiro presents a unique urban structure that locates favelas widespread throughout the city. Moreover, favelas are a common site of stigma, primarily perceived as bearer of disease and criminality.

The stigma placed upon the favelados contributes to the permanent segregation to the rest of the city, and serves as the basis for many types of intervention, such as eradication and demolition. This type of approach does not tackle urban poverty at its roots, disregarding the personal interest of the residents of the favelas.

This video provides a great insight on eviction seen through the eyes of the favelados, which are obligated to leave the places in which they have always been living in, because 'they -the government and policy-makers- don't want the ugly favela houses here'.

Using media as a way to depict poverty is a powerful tool to allow society to rethink about slum dwellers and reduce the stigma placed upon them.