Articles written by Felicity Clarke:
Evictions, Gentrification & Displacement: Three Short Docs on the Forces Shaping Rio Today [VIDEOS]
May 9th
Right now in Rio, favela residents across the city are being forced out of their homes and communities. Tens of thousands of families are having to leave their self-built homes, often of decades, due to direct state intervention where residents are told they are being removed for mega-event developments or because they are in “risk areas,” or due to the more subtle forces of real estate speculation and gentrification whereby residents can no longer afford to live in their own communities. Both types of eviction mean residents must move out to peripheral, underserved areas of the city, where land is cheaper, new favelas More >
‘We’re Young, Black & from the Favela–We Want to Live’
Apr 15th
Following the recent North Zone UPP police killings of 21 year-old Aliélson Nogueira in Jacarezinho on April 4th and 16 year-old Mateus Oliveira Casé in Manguinhos on March 20th, favela residents, NGOs, community organizations and activists are coming together in a series of events to protest the disproportionate assassination of young, black favela residents by agents of the state. Beyond expressing their anger and indignation, the network, that includes the Rio de Janeiro Youth Forum, Forum Social de Manguinhos, Rede Contra Violência, Observatório de Favelas, Ocupa Alemão, Favela Não Se Cale, Apafunk, More >
Colônia Juliano Moreira in the Dark Over TransOlímpica, Public Works & Compulsory Crack Treatment
Apr 5th
“There’s a total lack of transparency on the part of the authorities with Colônia and its residents. We want answers,” asserts Juliana Moura Marques, resident of Colônia Juliano Moreira in Jacarepaguá and member of the community’s E-Colônia movement.
For the last few months, the group has been calling for explanations from the City government over the change in route of the TransOlímpica BRT highway to pass through the neighborhood, abandoned public works and the proposed use of the community’s historic psychiatric hospital for the compulsory treatment of crack addicts. They organized a meeting for this purpose on Friday March 22nd, yet no one from More >
Demolition in Beira Rio, Manguinhos: Resistance Amidst the Rubble
Mar 13th
Yesterday morning, Tuesday March 13th, a demolition crew contracted by the Rio de Janeiro State government arrived at the Beira Rio community in Manguinhos in Rio’s North Zone to demolish vacated houses as part of an eviction process that has been underway for four years now. Arriving unannounced without warning residents still living in adjacent houses, cutting off the electricity supply and proceeding to bulldoze recently vacated houses without necessary official documentation, the crew’s activity was eventually halted around 3pm when residents, supported by the media presence of several journalists, called on the UPP police officers to investigate the legality of More >
Olympic Legacy in East London: Displacement & Gentrification
Jan 25th
Last year’s London Olympics is widely viewed as a success. From Danny Boyle’s spectacular opening and closing ceremonies to the smooth organizational running of the Games, the event seemed to represent a model hosting of an international mega-event and, despite the British public’s complaints of overspending and questioning of value in the run up to the Games, the country was swept by a wave of national pride as the Games came and went.
But what of the Olympics’ local impacts and long term legacy in East London, the main site of the 2012 Games and the Olympic Park?
The East End of More >
