Posts tagged Cosmos
The Story of Dona Maria
Oct 3rd
Maria Garcez looked on devastated as City workers demolished her home in Favela do Metrô on November 4th, 2010. Her image accompanied RioOnWatch’s first report on the brutal eviction of the community to reportedly build a parking lot for the World Cup 2014 at the nearby Maracanã stadium, though to this day no official project for the site has been released.
Two years later we met up with Dona Maria, 65, at the apartment she shares with her granddaughter in Minha Casa, Minha Vida replacement housing in the distant West Zone neighborhood of Cosmos. With expressive outbursts in her thick Northeast accent, Dona Maria, who has More >
Rio Olympic Evictions Roundup
Aug 20th
Since October 2009 when Rio was selected to host the 2016 Olympics, more than 8,000 people have been evicted from their homes. Tens of thousands more are expected. Forced eviction should not be confused with consensual relocation; the prior is nonconsensual by nature and violates basic local, state and federal legislation, as well as widely held human rights.
Upon studying the extensive documentation of the removal of eight communities, partial evictions of several others, and reports from yet another 11 currently under threat, the following patterns of abuses have been found to be commonplace:
Lack of Notification
On May 21st, 2011 city authority representatives turned More >
Favela do Metrô Terrorized through Drawn-out Eviction
May 9th
RioOnWatch was the first news site to report on the brutal Favela do Metrô eviction back in November 2010. A year and a half later we revisit the scene to see how residents have faired. Slideshow is also available.
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Two years on from the first announcements that their houses would be cleared to make way for World Cup 2014 developments, residents of Favela do Metrô are still living through the brutal, drawn out destruction of their community.
A stone’s throw from the world famous Maracanã stadium, Favela do Metrô was founded 33 years ago by workers from the Northeast of Brazil hired to build More >
Brazil is Missing an Opportunity to Invest in the Favelas (NYT Olympics Debate in-depth response)
Apr 2nd
April 2, 2012–CatComm Executive Director Theresa Williamson invited to engage in a New York Times debate forum on the legacy of mega-events. See original debate here with concise response here. Full response follows:
Rio de Janeiro’s economy was stagnant from 1975-2005, taking off over the past half decade thanks to offshore oil discoveries, improved local-state-federal cooperation, and increasing investor confidence overall. There is no doubt confidence shown in the city being selected to host the 2014 World Cup Final and, more critically, the 2016 Summer Olympics, has played a critical role, particularly given Rio’s prior reputation for violence and mismanagement. Rio is now receiving double More >
9 Months Post Eviction: 3 Households Left Unsettled
Feb 29th
Nine months after eviction by Rio’s city government, Carlos Machado Lopes and his family–his elderly mother (Jacy), brother (Edmilsom) and sister-in-law (Vanessa)–still do not have homes. Their home in Campinho was demolished without warning last May, and after dividing up a measly and delayed compensation among them, Carlos had to move in with a friend 30km away in Miguel Couto. He could only afford to buy a motorcycle and now works as a moto-taxi driver with his share of the compensation. Carlos’ ailing mother had to stay behind in Campinho in her daughter’s overcrowded and precarious house, while Carlos’ brother and More >
