{"id":46080,"date":"2018-08-11T12:16:11","date_gmt":"2018-08-11T15:16:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/?p=46080"},"modified":"2020-08-07T14:03:31","modified_gmt":"2020-08-07T17:03:31","slug":"two-years-after-2016-olympics-vila-autodromo-celebrates-glorious-victory-and-looks-toward-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=46080","title":{"rendered":"Two Years After Rio Olympics, Vila Aut\u00f3dromo Celebrates ‘Glorious Victory,’ Looks Toward the Future"},"content":{"rendered":"

Clique aqui para Por<\/strong>tugu\u00eas<\/strong><\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

On August 5, 2016, the Olympic Games began in Rio de Janeiro. As teargas choked protesting activists<\/a>\u00a0outside Maracan\u00e3 Stadium, a tiny fraction of\u00a0<\/span>the original residents of\u00a0<\/span>Vila Aut\u00f3dromo<\/span><\/a> were busy moving into new homes. These twenty families had resisted relocation<\/a>\u00a0against all odds <\/span>after <\/span>years of struggle<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and the loss of 97% of the community\u2019s original residents. Two years later, on August 5, 2018, at an event jointly organized by the Evictions Museum<\/a> and the Public Defenders Land and Housing Nucleus<\/a> (NUTH), residents and supporters celebrated Vila Aut\u00f3dromo’s notable<\/a><\/span>\u00a0victory, while looking forward to the community’s future\u2014as well as the future of housing rights in Brazil more generally.<\/span><\/p>\n

Having resisted eviction in a determined and creative<\/a> manner, twenty families <\/span>succeeded in their struggle to stay<\/span><\/a> in the community as part of the first-ever collectively negotiated rehousing agreement in Rio de Janeiro. T<\/span>he government built new homes for those residents who remained and\u00a0promised further upgrades<\/a>\u00a0of community spaces in the months following the Olympic Games<\/span>. This second phase of upgrades, which should have been completed by the end of 2016, has not yet begun.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

The Evictions Museum<\/a> <\/span>was born out of the resistance movement to ensure that the memories of eviction and struggle in Vila Aut\u00f3dromo are not lost. The Museum is a statement by residents, asserting that Vila Aut\u00f3dromo cannot be wiped off the map and that “memory cannot be erased.” As museologist Mario Chagas<\/a> explained, the Evictions Museum also lends legitimacy to residents of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo in telling their story in elite spaces<\/a>, such as universities and other museums in the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The event opened with a photo exhibition entitled \u201cImages of Memory and Struggle<\/span>\u201d by Luiz Claudio Silva. Silva has lived in Vila Aut\u00f3dromo for more than twenty years; his family’s home was the last to be demolished before the community reached an agreement with the City. In Silva’s words, the exhibition presents the \u201cperspective of a resident of a community that was violated in the recent process of urban transformation unchained by the mega-events, presenting a sensitive view from someone engaged in a daily struggle for their right to exist in the city.<\/span>\u201d Such images, Silva explained, help to \u201cpreserve the\u00a0memory of the community and everything that happened here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

After the photo exhibition, a discussion was held in the community’s Catholic church, chaired by Public Defender Adriana Bevilaqua. The panel was composed of Regina Bienenstein<\/a>, p<\/span>rofessor of architecture and urbanism at the Fluminense Federal University (UFF);\u00a0Carlos Vainer<\/a>,<\/span>\u00a0professor of urban planning at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ); and\u00a0<\/span>Maria da Penha<\/span>, resident of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo. The two professors led the team of urban planners that collaborated with the community to produce the Vila Aut\u00f3dromo People’s Plan<\/a>,<\/span>\u00a0presenting an alternative future for the community in which evictions were not necessary.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bienenstein began her speech by saying how good it was to be back in Vila Aut\u00f3dromo and that she had missed the community. \u201cThe struggle of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo,\u201d she explained, \u201cremains an exemplary case of resistance<\/a> [against evictions].\u201d<\/span>\u00a0Describing the process of constructing the People’s Plan<\/a>, she affirmed that the case of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo provides important lessons<\/span>\u00a0in the struggle for housing rights. Importantly, she noted, \u201cVila Aut\u00f3dromo was never alone,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0drawing support from social movements, universities, politicians, and others.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the end, although 97% of the community was evicted, she views the story of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo as a relative victory, not just because of the success of those who remained, but for those residents who left with adequate compensation packages<\/a> <\/span>as a result of their fierce resistance. However, Bienenstein warned: \u201cThe shadow of eviction doesn\u2019t disappear… W<\/span>e have to give visibility to this struggle.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0She stated that “the struggle is not over,”\u00a0<\/span>explaining that residents have not been given promised documents to prove ownership<\/span> and are still waiting for undelivered upgrades<\/a>, including a sports field and community square.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

While Bienenstein spoke of the past and the struggle that continues to this day, Vainer contemplated how these memories can help envision future possibilities.\u00a0<\/span>Vila Aut\u00f3dromo \u201clives in each one of us, in the memory of each of us,” he asserted.\u00a0<\/span>Here, at such events, \u201cwe construct the present from our past, and open possibilities for the future,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0creating a space where \u201cwe can think about and change the future.”<\/span><\/p>\n

This \u201cpossibility of a different future\u201d<\/span> allows us to affirm that \u201cwe want a different city,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0he explained. Referencing the People’s Plan, he said: \u201cVila Aut\u00f3dromo made its plan. Vila Aut\u00f3dromo projected its future.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0In doing so, these residents demonstrated the possibility of \u201ca new Vila, a new city, a new world,\u201d argued Vainer, slyly inverting the official motto<\/a> of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.<\/span><\/p>\n

Inspirational orator and twenty-year resident Maria da Penha<\/a> then took the microphone and announced: \u201cThank God for this wonderful afternoon.”<\/span>\u00a0Penha remarked that seeing the church filled to capacity, overflowing into the street, fills her with happiness \u201cbecause we are here celebrating two years of [the community’s] upgrading.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>She said that Vila Aut\u00f3dromo’s achievement in remaining is what many would call impossible. Indeed, in anticipation of the Olympics, many residents and activists doubted that the community would be able to stay given the ferocity of the government\u2019s attempts to remove them<\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0Penha affirmed that while the community is utterly different today, their story should be seen as a victory. Yes, the community was \u201ctransformed, but with dignity.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0For this reason, she is \u201ccelebrating this day, this huge victory.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

For Penha, determination is essential: \u201cWhen you know what you want, you can get it… I<\/span>t\u2019s difficult, but it isn\u2019t impossible.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0Her land, she explained, holds a value that cannot be bought; money runs out, but her land will remain. As such, she is happy to stay on her land, even if not in her old house. “The beauty [here]… doesn\u2019t have a price,\u201d Penha declared.<\/span>\u00a0She thanked those who have supported the community over the years of struggle, pointing out individuals in the crowd to thank them for their contributions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Penha argued that education is critical in grassroots struggles. \u201cI have the right to stay,” she asserted, explaining how she managed to stay strong in the face of threats.\u00a0Educating people about their rights is more powerful than breaking things in protest, she argued, because when things are broken it is the workers who have to fix it. She outlined some of the tools that residents used to resist, from the events and seminars organized by Occupy Vila Aut\u00f3dromo\u00a0to giving interviews, allowing people to \u201ccarry our story outside”\u2014locally and globally.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Many in attendance at the event were students from the Fluminense Federal University (UFF). Penha remarked that \u201cit is very important that you, students, are here, hearing the people.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0She suggested that having heard these stories, these future planners and architects will be cognizant of issues facing communities like Vila Aut\u00f3dromo and do their work with love and kindness, transforming the dominant mode of government intervention in favelas. Penha concluded her inspiring speech with a message of hope for the future, met with loud applause from the crowd: \u201cYes, we can change this city and this country.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Bevilaqua, a public defender who had worked on the community\u2019s case, recalled hearing people often say, \u201cI don\u2019t know if I will stay, but I have no fear.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0Vila Aut\u00f3dromo’s “glorious victory\u201d is a testament to this fearlessness, she said. A<\/span>s the discussion opened up to the audience, Daniel Ferriera Campos<\/a><\/span>, a community organizer from <\/span>Vila Uni\u00e3o de Curicica<\/span><\/a>,<\/span> commented that he \u201clearned a lot from Dona Penha\u201d<\/span> about continuing to fight in the face of eviction threats. Thanks, in part, to the support of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo, his \u201chouse still stands today.”<\/span><\/p>\n

These words capture the theme of the discussion: thanking Vila Aut\u00f3dromo for the lesson in resistance. \u201cThe resistance shown by residents of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo sets a great example for others,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0said one speaker, telling the residents in attendance: \u201cYou are huge inspirations.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0In response to these comments, with a mischievous grin, Professor Vainer suggested that the area should be reoccupied: the twenty homes that are here today will become the capital of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo. He concluded: \u201cLet\u2019s start working in this direction.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Closing the debate, Penha acknowledged the birds nesting in the church that had been chirping throughout the discussion. These birds, she says, \u201care occupying because they have the right to the land. This is wonderful.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After the panel discussion, Silva led the crowd of over fifty visitors on a tour of the Evictions Museum, explaining that the community itself is the museum\u2014a monument to memories of struggle. He showed photos and landmarks in the community, explaining their significance in the struggle. As he picked fruit from one of the remaining trees<\/a> <\/span>in the community, he lamented the missed opportunity of the Olympics. Silva loves sports\u2014he works as a physical education teacher and organized soccer tournaments<\/a> <\/span>as part of the resistance movement. The Olympics, he said, could have presented a great opportunity to leave a positive social legacy by upgrading this community, showing what favelas could be with the support of the State.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As residents of Vila Aut\u00f3dromo celebrated the community’s vitality and dreamed of a better future, the Olympic Park next door stood empty and derelict.<\/span><\/p>\n

Adam Talbot is a lecturer in the sociology of sport at Abertay University, Dundee. His research focuses on protest, human rights, and the Olympic Games.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas On August 5, 2016, the Olympic Games began in Rio de Janeiro. As teargas choked protesting activists\u00a0outside Maracan\u00e3 Stadium, a tiny fraction of\u00a0the original residents of\u00a0Vila Aut\u00f3dromo were busy moving into […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":78,"featured_media":46088,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1854,2315,1736,1288,1333,1271,329,1329],"tags":[2109,2032,538,674,11,282,26,1033,327,165,1513,5,518,1866,69,2413,270,1008,1938,1402,980,2463,2536,2323,4,592,21],"writer":[1901],"translator":[],"illustrator":[],"photographer":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-46080","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-housingwatch","8":"category-legacywatch","9":"category-1736","10":"category-highlight","11":"category-event-reports","12":"category-favelaqualities","13":"category-solutions","14":"category-by-international-observers","15":"tag-community-museum","16":"tag-evictions-museum","17":"tag-exhibition","18":"tag-memory","19":"tag-forced-evictions","20":"tag-housing","21":"tag-housing-rights","22":"tag-land-rights","23":"tag-legacy-myth","24":"tag-maracana","25":"tag-market-rate-compensation","26":"tag-olympics","27":"tag-organizing-tactics","28":"tag-peoples-plan","29":"tag-public-defenders","30":"tag-public-defenders-housing-nucleus-nuth","31":"tag-resistance","32":"tag-right-to-the-city","33":"tag-rio-2016","34":"tag-legacy","35":"tag-social-legacy","36":"tag-social-museology","37":"tag-uff","38":"tag-ufrj","39":"tag-vila-autodromo","40":"tag-vila-uniao-de-curicica","41":"tag-west-zone","42":"writer-adam-talbot"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46080","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/78"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=46080"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46080\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/46088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=46080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=46080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=46080"},{"taxonomy":"writer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwriter&post=46080"},{"taxonomy":"translator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftranslator&post=46080"},{"taxonomy":"illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fillustrator&post=46080"},{"taxonomy":"photographer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fphotographer&post=46080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}