Fireworks for New Year’s Eve. Anderson. CC2.0
From eating 12 grapes before midnight in Spain to drinking champagne with ashes and planting underwater trees in Russia, check out these 10 countries and how they celebrate the New Year in different ways. You might find some new ideas for your own New Years in 2024.
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City of Manaus. Dennis Jarvis. CC BY-SA 2.0
My first guide in Manaus explained that when people think about a city in the middle of the Amazon, they expect the city to be wild and see snakes crossing the streets. The reality of the Amazon’s largest city, located in Brazil’s Amazonas Province, is completely different. This past May I spent one of the most memorable weeks of my life in this province. During that time, I did go deep into the Amazon, where I saw a tree Boa, a large snake. But, I also visited a beautiful pink opera house, a fish market, antique bookstores, fancy restaurants, the Presidente Figueiredo Waterfalls, and even the Ponta Negra Beach, which was lined with tall buildings that seemed to be hotels, just like any beach town you’d find in the US.
Me, in the Amazon outside of Manaus. Jeremy Giles
This city of over two million people borders both the Rio Negro and the Amazon River, and is the access point to reach many communities deeper within the Amazon jungle. It is also one of Brazil’s largest industrial centers, including businesses that have nothing to do with the rainforest it borders. In my experience, Manaus is a city unlike any other, and thrives off defying expectations.
Manáos, Eduardo Ribeiro Avenue in 1909. National Library of Brazil, public domain.
Manaus was originally founded in 1669 as a Portuguese fort. By 1832, the fort grew into a town, and received its modern name, Manaus, meaning “mother of the gods,” from the indigenous Manaós tribe. Only 16 years later Manaus expanded into a city. Two years after that, it was officially declared the capital of the Amazonas province.
After the invention of cars in the late 1800s, Manaus became the center of the rubber boom due to the almost complete South American monopoly of rubber trees, which are native to the Amazon basin. This completely changed the city, as it became viewed as the gateway to the Amazon, and became home to many incredibly wealthy rubber barons. These ridiculously rich families had more money than things to spend it on, and began to focus on architecture, shipping materials all the way from Europe to build huge beautiful masterpieces, many of which still exist today.
By the early to mid 1900s the rubber boom had almost completely left Brazil, being replaced by rubber trees brought to Southeast Asia. This spelled financial ruin for Manaus, which sank into desperation. This poverty continued until 1967, when Manaus was named a duty free zone, making it cheap for companies to move there. This allowed Manaus to grow into the economic hub it is today, currently being a Brazilian access point for over 600 global companies.
Amazon Theatre in Manaus. Rafael Zart. CC BY 2.0.
The Amazonas Theatre opened in 1897, carrying with it Manaus’ nickname “the Paris of the Tropics.” The opera theater was built almost entirely using materials imported from Europe, topped with a beautiful dome of Brazil’s flag.
At the time of its opening, the opera theater was in many ways a sign of all that was wrong in Manaus. It was built for Manaus’ uber-wealthy, using the money they made by exploiting the local population to harvest the rubber they sold abroad. Moreover, even the few who could enter the opera house valued the status it brought them more than the opera itself. The most expensive seats in the opera house were those that were the most visible to the public. Ironically, these spots actually had the worst view of the stage itself.
Today, the opera house, which remains a top opera house in the world, has come a long way from its imperialistic origins. Most performances at the theater are free, and those that aren’t are very affordable. The performances feature both local artists and acts from around the world. Moreover, to encourage all to join, a large screen is often set up in the plaza in front of the opera house, allowing as many people to see the performances as possible.
Manaus market from the river. archer10 (Dennis). CC BY-SA 2.0.
In many ways, the center of Manaus is its ports. Manaus is bordered by both the Rio Negro and the Amazon River, allowing for a large number of ships and ferries, both for tourists and locals. These boats can take you deeper into the Amazon or out of it entirely, allowing ocean freight ships to transport goods directly to Manaus.
In addition, much of Manaus’ culture and nature revolves around the ports. A little over a half hour by boat from Manaus’ ports is the meeting of the waters, a line where the Rio Negro meets the Amazon River. This line is clearly visible with the water looking different and being a clearly different temperature on either side of the line.
On land, about a five minute walk from Manaus’ largest port is an amazing market “Mercado Municipal” that, every morning, is filled with different fresh fish, including some of the biggest fish in the world. My personal favorite of these huge fish is Tambaqui, a cousin of the Piranha and one of the most delicious meals I’ve ever had. The fish is so big that its ribs are visible and alone big enough for a meal. In fact, I’d go even further to say that, to me at least, the ribs are the best part.
The Amazon Rainforest, a few hours from Manaus. Jeremy Giles
While Manaus itself is a big city, much of the land around it is still forested and filled with natural wonders. If you go an hour or two downstream on the Rio Negro, you will be greeted by intensely green trees on both sides which, in the right conditions, are perfectly reflected by the black water below you. In the wet season this water will rise several meters, causing many of the trees to jut out of the water itself. Just to note, climate change has caused the water to rise more now than in the past, however, the water rising multiple meters is a natural phenomenon and one that actually helps the trees survive.
When you’re surrounded by the trees you may start to be greeted by animals almost immediately. Howler and spider monkeys can be seen leaping from tree to tree, sometimes carrying their babies, and boas can be found curled up on branches. The water itself is dotted with caiman and different kinds of fish. The lucky will get to see pink river dolphins breaching the water’s surface.
A waterfall at El Presidente Figueiredo. Jeremy Giles
There is plenty to see around Manaus and in Manaus on land as well. Most notably, about an hour and a half drive from Manaus are the Presidente Figueiredo waterfalls. These waterfalls are all stunning to look it, with fast moving water from the Rio Negro. However, they do vary in size. The first waterfall I was unable to approach because it was too big. The second one was small enough that I was able to climb behind it.
The Rio Negro, or Black River in English, gets its color from the decaying vegetation that falls into it. Beyond giving the river a wondrous dark hue, this decay causes the river to be relatively acidic. While it is perfectly okay for humans to swim in the water, the same cannot be said for mosquitoes, who almost completely avoid the river. This is amazing for Manaus, which borders the Rio Negro, as the city has relatively few mosquitos despite being in the middle of the Amazon.
President Lula visiting a motorcycle factory in Manaus. Brasil em Mapas Brazilmaps. CC BY 2.0
While much of Manaus’ economy does revolve around the Amazon, the tech industry is actually one of the city’s largest. Brazil’s largest research and development Institute, the Sidia Institute of Science and Technology, is based in Manaus. Moreover, Manaus is known for its extensive motorcycle industry, producing over 1.4 million motorcycles in 2022.
Manauara Shopping Center. Naldo Arruda. CC BY 2.0
I’ve spent the past few days trying to think of what, out of everything I saw, best represents Manaus. I believe I’ve found it, but, like everything else with the city, it’s not what you would expect.
The Manauara Shopping mall is a huge and beautiful structure, with big glass windows lining the outside, seeming to connect the building to the world beyond its walls. It has more than 200 stores, which range from those selling wooden crafts and acai from the Amazon to big brands on national and international levels. The moment I remember most is when, after exploring the first three levels of the mall, my family decided to visit the basement food court. Going down the escalator, we saw the same glass windows from the front of the building, except this time, they were facing inwards. We walked towards a door under the hulking glass and through it outside into open space. I looked up and spiraling branches blanketed with green leaves towered above me, almost blocking my view of the night sky. I breathed in the air deeply, letting go of a tension I didn’t know I was holding. Looking back, in this moment, in a rainforest in the middle of a mall, I truly experienced Manaus most.
Jeremy Giles
Jeremy is a Writing Seminars and International Studies major at Johns Hopkins University. He is an avid writer and the Co-Founder of Writers’ Warehouse, Johns Hopkins’ first creative writing group. He is an advocate for Indigenous rights, and studies how Indigenous philosophies can be used to help prevent climate change. Using his writing, he hopes to bring attention to underrepresented voices in today’s world.
Music spoken in Portuguese (more commonly known as Lusophone) often stems from Brazil, Mozambique and Cape Verde. From bossa nova, to MPB to Tropicalia, learn and listen in this article on some amazing musical traditions.
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The Cascadas de Agua Azul, located in southern Mexico, are a series of waterfalls on the Xanil River. Claudia Tavani. CC BY-NC 2.0.
Every year, countless travelers visit the world’s tallest waterfalls, with Niagara Falls receiving over 13 million visitors alone. However, it is only one of hundreds of waterfalls in North America, and one of thousands worldwide. Hidden away in corners of South America, Europe, Africa and Asia are a multitude of other falls that display nature’s power and beauty. Waterfalls are divided into ten categories depending on their geographic surroundings and how they descend through them. These include punchbowl waterfalls like the Kawasan Falls at number three on our list, horsetail waterfalls, chutes, cataracts, cascades like the one found at Akchour at number seven on our list and block waterfalls formed by wide rivers falling in uninterrupted sheets, to name a few. Here are seven incredible highlights that may not be the tallest or widest in the world, but are absolutely unmissable simply for their sheer beauty.
Croatia’s Plitvicka Jezera National Park is home to a beautiful network of lakes and waterfalls. Jack Brauer. CC BY-SA 2.0.
Located in central Croatia between the country’s capital of Zagreb and the coastal city of Zadar, Plitvice Lakes National Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1979. Its protected area spans 300 square kilometers (roughly 115 square miles) and comprises a network of lakes and caves, which are connected by a series of breathtaking waterfalls. These can be viewed from the various footpaths and wooden bridges that traverse the park, or visitors can also enjoy a boat ride included in the price of the entrance ticket. Because of its protected status, the park is also home to bears, wolves and eagles among a whole host of wild animals.
A birds eye view of one of the many waterfalls in Iguazu National Park, Argentina. Tomfriedel. CC BY 2.0.
The Iguazu Falls stretch for 2.7 kilometers (around 1.7 miles) along the border between the Misiones province in Western Argentina and the state of Paraná in Eastern Brazil. Altogether, the network makes up the largest system of waterfalls in the world, and was accordingly named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984. Thanks to a longstanding preservation effort in the two national parks on either side of the border that share custody of the falls, a network of walkways and viewing platforms can bring visitors very close to the falls, including near the bottom in an area called “Devil’s Throat”. You can travel to the falls by car from both the Brazilian and Argentinian sides, as well as from the Ciudad del Este in Paraguay.
Kawasan Falls is hidden away in the jungles of Cebu Island, Philippines. Vicky Flip Flop. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
The Instagram famous turquoise waters of Kawasan Falls are reachable by a three-hour bus ride southwest of Cebu City in the Philippines. The tropical waterfall is accompanied by limestone canyons and a dense jungle, all of which surround the pools often referred to as the “Gatorade Factory” due to their incredible color. Located in the coastal municipality of Badian, visitors can hike the kilometer and a half (just under a mile) long route uphill to reach the first and largest of many waterfalls that make up the series. Those interested in spending more time in the area can even book cottages available for overnight stays, though most opt to simply rent bamboo rafts to explore the pools.
Iceland is home to numerous waterfalls with the Gullfoss Waterfall being a favorite among locals. O Palsson. CC BY 2.0.
The Icelandic name Gullfoss translates into “golden falls” in English, a reference to the sediment in the Hvita River from the nearby glacier that causes this spectacular waterfall to glow gold in the Nordic sunlight. Located a 90-minute drive west of the capital of Reykjavik, the two cascades that form Gullfoss are not actually that tall, falling for a total of only 31 meters (roughly 102 feet). However, seeing the waterfall up close can still be a deafening experience with floods of water going over the edge at a rate of around 109 cubic meters (just under 50,000 cubic feet) per second. There aren’t any railings or barriers either, so it is up to visitors to keep a safe distance from the cliff’s edge.
Travelers can visit Hawai’i’s Weeping Wall located in the heart of Kauai Island. Ahonui Bowman. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Hawai’i is well-known for its incredible natural beauty, and the Weeping Wall is one of many spectacular sites on the island of Kauai. The network consists of a series of extremely narrow waterfalls winding across the centrally located Mount Waialeale, which stands 1,569 meters (about 5,066 feet) tall. The mountain’s name translates from Hawaiian to “overflowing water”, given that this location is in fact the second wettest area on the planet, and receives just under 11.5 meters (just under 37.5 feet) of rain every year. Given the mountain’s height, visitors rarely get a view of the upper part of the falls as it is often hidden in the clouds, but watching the water tumble down through the tropical greenery is still an incredible sight to see.
A view of the Ban Gioc Waterfalls from Cao Bang, Vietnam. Applejuice. CC BY-SA 2.0.
Located on the border between the Cao Bang province in Northern Vietnam and the Guang Xi province in Western China, the Ban Gioc falls are the largest waterfall network in Asia. The waterfall stretches over 30 (about 98 feet) across on the Chinese side where it is known to locals as the De Tian Waterfall instead. Ban Gioc cascades down over three tiers of lush greenery, feeding directly into the Quay Son River, which in fact runs along the China-Vietnam border. Traveling to the falls from the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi normally takes visitors about two days to complete, with an overnight stop in Cao Bang City to split up the six and a half hour drive.
The higher of the two waterfalls that make up Cascades D’akchour near Chefchaouen, Morocco. Culture Trekking. CC BY-ND 2.0.
The Cascades D’akchour are tucked in amongst the Rif Mountains, the northernmost chain in Morocco. Reachable via a 45-minute drive from the famed “blue city” of Chefchaouen, visitors can enjoy a mountainous trek connecting several smaller waterfalls before arriving at the final cascade whose upper section tumbles down 100 meters of rock face (roughly 328 feet) into a collecting pool. The lower cascade, on the other hand, stands at a much smaller 20 meters tall (just under 66 feet) but also features a natural swimming pool just upstream of its descent over the cliff. For those interested in exploring even further, another hour and a half of hiking can bring you to the Pont de Dieu or Bridge of God, a naturally formed rock bridge carved out of the mountain by the Farda River.
Tanaya Vohra
Tanaya is an undergraduate student pursuing a major in Public Health at the University of Chicago. She's lived in Asia, Europe and North America and wants to share her love of travel and exploring new cultures through her writing.
Protest against male violence in London’s Trafalgar Square. Garry Knight. CC0 1.0.
These 5 activists from Mexico, Serbia, Palestine, Brazil and Nigeria, are fighting to end femicide, the deliberate killing of women because of their gender. More than 35% of murdered women globally are killed by an intimate partner, yet femicide also manifests in honor killings, dowry killings and killing of women in armed conflict.
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Two capoeiristas in the streets of Brazil. Otubo. CC BY 2.0
Merengue dancer. Max Bosio. CC BY 2.0
Merengue is the national dance of the Dominican Republic; however, merengue originated in multiple sites across the Caribbean. In Puerto Rico, Cuban marching bands created the merengue initially called the “upa” in 1842. At this time, local elites considered an African variant of the dance as a “corrupting influence.” Therefore, the government passed laws to fine and imprison those who danced merengue. Forty years later, Puerto Rico’s merengue died out, but Dominican merengue lived on. Merengue has two origin stories circulating in the Dominican Republic. The first story is that enslaved people created the dance as they cut sugar to the beat of drums while dragging one chained leg behind them. The other story is about a hero who returned to his village with a wounded leg after a revolution in the Dominican Republic. Both stories explain the usage of a dragging leg movement used in merengue.
Merengue pairs dance with flirtatious gestures as dancers move in circles. Meanwhile, the music usually consists of accordions, drums and saxophones. Merengue plays an active role in many people’s daily lives; for instance, at social gatherings, celebrations and political campaigning. The dance has migrated to other Latin American countries, such as Venezuela and Colombia, where various forms have emerged.
A couple dancing street bachata. Fridaycafe. CC BY-SA 2.0
Bachata was born in the Dominican Republic during the dictatorship of Trujillo. Trujillo claimed bachata was a lower art form and altogether banned both the music and the dance. As a result, bachata was only enjoyed in brothels, not helping its status as a respectable dance. Even after Trujillo’s reign, bachata was still frowned upon by society. In the 1960s and 70s, the people considered bachata to be “the poor people’s music.” Now, bachata is accepted and celebrated as hundreds of academics, studios and schools are dedicated to its transmission. There are three primary forms of bachata practiced; the Dominican bachata, bachata moderna and the traditional style. Bachata is a passionate dance between partners characterized by sensual hip movement and a simple eight-step structure. The lyrics of bachata music typically express deep feelings of love, passion, nostalgia, and feature a strong guitar base. Recently, bachata gained popularity because artists like Aventura, Prince Royce and Romeo Santos who turned bachata into one of the most sensual and romantic Latin dances.
Tango dancers amidst their dance. Armando Maynez. CC BY 2.0
Tango emerged from the immigrant culture on Argentina’s dockside slums; it’s a fusion of New World, African and European dance styles. Specifically, the music is inspired by the African community in Buenos Aires and uses elements from African rhythm, European music and South American songs. In its early years, tango primarily took place in the brothels of Buenos Aires. The steps are considered sexual and aggressive, with music creating feelings of longing and despair. It is said that dancers acted out the relationship of the prostitute and the pimp. In Buenos Aires, the upper-class society formerly considered tango indecent and associated it with violence, illicit sex and the lower class. In 1912, the passage of universal suffrage laws granted the lower class legitimacy, giving tango higher credibility.
Additionally, as tango moved across Europe, the steps simplified and the sensual quality diminished a little. European approval made the tango acceptable to all Argentineans, and by the 1920s, it evolved into a national folk treasure. Argentinian dancers at its peak in the 1940s performed in cabarets, dance salons, social and sports clubs and restaurants. During tango’s golden age, Maria Nieves, a star from the 1980s show Forever Tango, said, “We were swept away by our love for tango. We just loved to go dancing. We didn't go out looking for sex...we didn't care what the man looked like. It was a nice, beautiful, pure group of girls, interested only in the tango.”
Samba dancers in Brazil. Sfmission.com. CC BY 2.0
Samba originated in Brazil as a musical genre and dance style. Samba’s roots are in Africa. Brazil’s African descendants brought as slaves from Angola and Congo first influenced and created the dance. Samba was first born in Bahia, a coastal state of Brazil known as “Little Africa.” Some believe the Bahian priestesses would invoke the gods through song and dance. The word “samba” derives from the African Bantu word “semba.” The Kimbundo word means “naval bump” which depicts intimacy and invitation to dance. The word samba is also the infinitive of kusamba, which means to pray or do a favor to the gods through song and dance. Some believe the heart of samba comes from Angola’s traditional semba music, which is about celebrating religious worship through an ancient rhythm. The musical genre combines percussion tempo with sounds of pandeiro, reco reco, tamborim and ciuca. The dance form typically emphasizes the movements of the hip and belly. Samba has become an icon of Brazil’s national identity as a form of cultural expression.
Capoeira with instruments playing in the background CC BY-SA 2.0
Capoeira isn’t a typical dance; it’s an art form tying fighting, dance, music, ritual and philosophy together to create a unique game called jogo de capoeira. Enslaved Africans brought their traditions from various cultures to South America, including capoeira. It was practiced on plantations as means of breaking the bonds of slavery both physically and mentally. At that time, capoeira was prohibited by the Brazilian Penal Code, because it was considered a social infirmity. The term “the outlaw” became so deeply incorporated with capoeira that the word transformed into a synonym for “bum,” “bandit” and “thief.”
Nevertheless, capoeira persisted from its marginalized identity and became a cultural phenomenon. As a cultural art form, capoeira was a means to ensure African tradition would survive through slavery. Afro-Brazilians still uniquely evolve the practice throughout the years. The music along with capoeira consists of a bateria (orchestra) with three berimbau (stringed bow-like instruments), pandeiros (tambourines), an agogo (bell), a reco-reco (small bamboo instrument) and an atabaque (drum). The dance is like a game that can be playful and cooperative, intense and competitive. The movement is a fluid, swinging stance called “ginga.” Capoeiristas teach to attack and defend from any position with any part of the body to practice adaptability and preparedness for any movements. The underlying principles of capoeira are understanding the complexities of human interaction, being ready for anything, the value of cleverness and the strength of indirect resistance. As its creators were once oppressed, capoeira’s philosophy is rooted in survival at all costs through creative measures.
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Kyla Denisevich
Kyla is an upcoming senior at Boston University, and is majoring in Journalism with a minor in Anthropology. She writes articles for the Daily Free Press at BU and a local paper in Malden, Massachusetts called Urban Media Arts. Pursuing journalism is her passion, and she aims to highlight stories from people of all walks of life to encourage productive, educated conversation. In the future, Kyla hopes to create well researched multimedia stories which emphasize under-recognized narratives.
A protester on the streets in Brazil. Michelle Guimarães.
Over the course of 300 years, approximately four million Africans were taken to Brazil as slaves. Today, Brazil’s racial demographics are 47.7 percent white, 43.1 percent multiracial and 7.6 percent Black. The average income for white Brazilians is almost double that of the average income for Black or multiracial Brazilians, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. Also, 78.5 percent of people in Brazil who are receiving the lowest rate of income (equivalent to $5.50 U.S. dollars per day) are Black or multiracial people.
This May, Black Lives Matter protests filled the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Brasília after 28 people died during a police raid. Human rights activists said that the officers killed people who wanted to surrender and posed no threat. The raid took place in Rio de Janeiro, where heavily armed officers with helicopters and vehicles went into Jacarezinho, a poor neighborhood. Thousands of residents were subject to nine hours of terror.
Organizers said that 7,000 people took to the streets in Sao Paulo. Protesters painted the Brazilian flag with red paint and held up a school uniform stained with blood. In Rio de Janeiro, protestors chanted, “Don’t kill me, kill racism.”
As Brazilian author and activist Djamila Ribeiro said, “The Brazilian state didn't create any kind of public policy to integrate Black people in society," and that "although we didn't have a legal apartheid like the U.S. or South Africa, society is very segregated—institutionally and structurally."
In 2019, the police killed 6,357 people in Brazil, which is one of the highest rates of police killings in the world—and almost 80 percent of the victims were Black.
During COVID-19, Black Brazilians were more likely than other racial groups to report COVID-19 symptoms, and more likely to die in the hospital. Experts attributed this disparity to high rates of informal employment among Black people, preventing them from the ability to work from home, and a higher prevalence of pre-existing conditions. Specifically, in 2019, Black Brazilians already accounted for the majority of unemployed workers (64.2%); therefore, they already lacked economic support even before the pandemic.
An artist’s photoshoot with Brazil flag covering their bodies. Eriscolors.
Only a quarter of federal deputies in the lower chamber of Brazil’s Congress and a third of managerial roles in companies were Black people, according to the IBGE statistics from 2019.
Brazil’s President, Jair Bolsonaro, said during his campaign in 2018 that descendants of people who were enslaved were “good for nothing, not even to procreate,” while using the slogan “my color is Brazil.”
Keisha-Khan Y. Perry, a professor at the University of Texas, conducted an ethnographic study looking at how Black women in Gamboa de Baixo—a city culturally and historically tied to Black Brazilians—are leading the community towards social activism against racist politics. Specifically, these racist policies include political urban revitalization programs that push out Black and poor people. Perry said that these policies are a political tactic continually utilized in Brazilian cities.
However, recently in May, Milton Barbosa, one of the founders of the most notable Black civil rights organization in Brazil, Unified Black Movement, said, “There’s been an increase in awareness nationally… We still have to fight, but there have been important changes.”
Kyla Denisevich
Kyla is an upcoming senior at Boston University, and is majoring in Journalism with a minor in Anthropology. She writes articles for the Daily Free Press at BU and a local paper in Malden, Massachusetts called Urban Media Arts. Pursuing journalism is her passion, and she aims to highlight stories from people of all walks of life to encourage productive, educated conversation. In the future, Kyla hopes to create well researched multimedia stories which emphasize under-recognized narratives.
The Juan A. Fernandez Hospital in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Defensoría del Pueblo de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. CC BY-SA.
On Aug. 27, the city council of Buenos Aires, Argentina, approved a new law that allows family members to maintain bedside vigils for patients dying of COVID-19. This comes after months of strict government-imposed lockdown measures which had drawn criticism and protests by citizens.
The new policy, known as “the Law of the Right to a Final Goodbye,” allows one family member of a patient dying of COVID-19 between the ages of 18 and 60 to maintain a bedside vigil with the patient, as long as they themselves are not pregnant or have preexisting medical conditions.
According to a press release from the Buenos Aires city council’s website, “the Plan of Accompaniment for patients infected with COVID-19 in an end-of-life situation [has the goal that] patients will be accompanied virtually or in-person, depending on their circumstances, by a person from their family environment.”
Juan Facundo del Gaiso, one of the legislators who voted for the law to be implemented, expressed his support for the new policy on Twitter in Spanish.
“Today we approved in [the city council] the first law in the country for the right to say goodbye,” del Gaiso tweeted. “As of today patients in critical condition can be accompanied by their [family members, out of] respect for the life and dignity of each person.”
Other cities across the country are currently looking toward the Buenos Aires law to find ways to ease tensions within their own communities, as protests have continued throughout the pandemic in response to the government’s strict quarantine regulations.
Argentina imposed a mandatory lockdown on March 20. This initially saw success, as throughout the first months of the pandemic the country had significantly lower numbers of cases compared to neighboring Chile and Brazil. However, cases continued to climb as the country considered easing restrictions, resulting in a prolonged lockdown which has lasted more than 160 days.
According to Rosendo Fraga, a political scientist based in Buenos Aires, a lot of the resentment toward the government’s restrictions is due to the psychological effects caused by the prolonged lockdown.
“People are at the end of their ropes; they are in trouble and they just cannot go on any longer,” Fraga said in an interview with Deutsche Welle. “President Alberto Fernandez's government simply underestimated the psychological damage such a long period of isolation would have on people.”
Much of this uncertainty dates back to long before the pandemic began. Over the past several decades, Argentina has faced several instances of hyperinflation, ending 2019 with an inflation rate of 53.8%, the highest in the past 28 years. In the same year, 25.6 percent of the country’s population was living in poverty.
According to Ana Ines Navarro, the director of the economics department at Austral University in Buenos Aires, this current socioeconomic crisis differs from prior ones on account of the country’s pandemic response.
“The serious problem that Argentina has at the moment is the closure of businesses,” Navarro said in an interview with Foreign Policy magazine. “It’s the number of companies that have stopped producing, or that can’t produce because they’re not yet operational, and that are unlikely to reopen after the quarantine. Then you are going to find, after the quarantine, a very worrying landscape from the point of view of the generation that is looking for employment.”
President Alberto Fernandez had originally stated earlier this summer that lockdown restrictions would be loosened on Sept. 1. However, on Aug. 28 President Fernández extended most restrictions until Sept. 20.
As of Aug. 3, Argentina has had 439,172 cases of COVID-19, the 10th-highest number in the world and the third-highest in South America. The majority of cases have been in and around Buenos Aires, which has a metropolitan population of over 15 million.
Jacob Sutherland
is a recent graduate from the University of California San Diego where he majored in Political Science and minored in Spanish Language Studies. He previously served as the News Editor for The UCSD Guardian, and hopes to shed light on social justice issues in his work.
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the dangers that threaten the Amazon rainforest
The Amazon rainforest during “fire season.” diversityphotos. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
There are a multitude of dangers ranging from climate change to human destruction that threaten the fragility of the Amazon rainforest. The destruction of the Amazon is largely attributed to consumerism and the extraction of natural resources. Without the existence of the Amazon, the world loses a crucial contender in the fight against climate change along with the likely deaths of many Indignenous people and already endangered species.
Reports from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research recorded 2,248 fires last month, a 13-year high and a 20% increase over the norm. Last year around this time, there were about 1,880 fires. However, the worst is likely yet to come as burnings in the Amazon tend to increase until September, the end of “fire season.”
In 2019, the greatest destruction of the fires correlated with the peak of fire season. The increase in the number of fires was likely fueled by President Jair Bolsonaro’s decision to decrease the fines for environmental violations. It gave more leeway for commercial groups and loggers to disregard regulations that help preserve the Amazon. Bolsonaro has been nicknamed “Captain Chainsaw” for his policies that prioritize development over conservation. In an interview, Bolsonaro stated that “the Amazon belongs to Brazil,” so it can do as it wishes with it. As a result, it was estimated last year that every minute, a portion of the Amazon equal to the size of a soccer field was lost due to deforestation.
The process of deforestation results from loggers trying to clear land as quickly as possible. That includes the use of chainsaws to cut down lumber for manufacturing and development. Then, farmers burn the downed trees that remain to make room for crops and pastures. Fire season, then,is the mark of when farmers begin to set these fires. It is important to acknowledge this is not a new practice, but an unending cycle of extracting from the land without replenishing it.
Another sign of deforestation in the Amazon. rosamariavidal. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
A similar phenomenon is occurring this year due to the lack of authority in the Amazon. Just as with last year, many of the fires started so far have been due to illegal loggers. For instance, in the first four months of 2020, deforestation rose by 55% due to a lack of governmental enforcement as Brazil’s attention focused on combating COVID-19.
The spread of COVID-19 also caused many activists and field agents to pull out of the region. As a consequence of the lack of protection by field agents and thin numbers of police, loggers and miners have been able to overtake the Amazon. To show the magnitude of this problem, April’s extent of deforestation was 64% higher than that in April 2019.
Due to international outcry last year over the fires, President Bolsonaro was forced to deploy enforcement to help monitor the fires and enforce regulations. Most new enforcement agents were unable to be deployed for this year’s fire season, though, due to COVID-19. And to make matters worse, the authority of troops currently in the Amazon expired on June 10, so there is currently no one monitoring fire conditions.
Eva Ashbaugh
is a Political Science and Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies double major at the University of Pittsburgh. As a political science major concentrating on International Relations, she is passionate about human rights, foreign policy, and fighting for equality. She hopes to one day travel and help educate people to make the world a better place.
Uruguay is sandwiched between Argentina and Brazil, has a population of just over 3.5 million, and is home to miles of coastline facing the Atlantic Ocean. Although the climate is fairly mild throughout the year, the warmer summer months are when the tourist attractions really come alive. Uruguay pairs a generally laid-back culture, full of food and art, with trendy nightlife. Visitors can also venture away from the cities to more rural areas and explore an expansive countryside. Given Uruguay’s diverse landscapes and activities, any visitor is sure to have a memorable experience.
A view of the Rambla and the Montevideo skyline. Marisali. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Montevideo is the largest city in Uruguay as well as the capital. With a vibrant art scene and culture, Montevideo is an exciting place to explore. You can take a walk down the Rambla, a 14-mile boardwalk that offers an unobstructed view of the ocean as you wind through various neighborhoods in Montevideo. If you want to go to the beach, visit the Pocitos neighborhood, which is known for its beach and hosting nautical events throughout the year. In the Old City, tour the Solís Theater, a grand performance venue designed in a neoclassical style that echoes many of the other European-influenced buildings across the city. If you are craving a bite to eat stop by the Mercado del Puerto (Port Market), a hub of restaurants, cafes and shops overlooking the water. This is a great place to try eating at an Uruguayan parrilla, or wood-fired barbecue.
La Mano in Punta del Este. Gamillos. CC BY-SA 2.0
Two hours away from Montevideo is Punta del Este, a trendy summer spot and a popular escape from the bustling city. Punta del Este has expansive beach access, some of which are rougher and face toward the ocean (such as Playa Brava) while others are calmer and preferred by those with young families (like Playa Mansa). At night, people can go out to bars, restaurants and clubs all over the city, where events can go on until the sun comes up. If you’re interested in a sleepier part of town, visit José Ignacio, a seasonal fishing village to the east. The national dish of Uruguay, the chivito, originated in Punta del Este. You would be remiss if you did not take a moment to sample a chivito (a beef sandwich with a variety of toppings such as cheese, egg and tomato) while visiting. For a taste of the arts, you can visit the iconic hand sculpture, crafted by Chilean artist Mario Irarrázabal, or the gallery and sculpture park of renowned artist Pablo Atchugarry.
An old building in Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. DiegoOlivera_Uy. CC BY-NC 2.0
A city with Portuguese roots, Colonia del Sacramento looks across the Rio de la Plata to Buenos Aires, Argentina. The cobbled streets of the Barrio Histórico are popular with visitors and this part of the city is labeled a UNESCO World Heritage Site. To enter this part of town you will cross a drawbridge of a former fortress. Notable landmarks include the Basilica of the Holy Sacrament, Convent of San Francisco, Calle de Portugal and the Colonia del Sacramento Lighthouse. This city will appeal to a wide range of visitors, from historians to vintage car enthusiasts.
Grapes hanging from the vine. UGA CAES/Extension. CC BY-NC 2.0
While in Uruguay, consider visiting one of many vineyards scattered across the country. Uruguay produces a variety of wines, but its signature red wine is called tannat. Although the wine originated in France, the Uruguayan version is considered to be softer due to the warmer climate. Many wineries will allow visitors to sample their wine and tour the grounds. You can visit popular wineries such as Bodega Bouza and Alto de la Ballena or organize a wine tour so you can experience a wide selection. Enjoy a glass while taking in the scenic Uruguayan landscapes.
Gauchos practicing in the countryside. Nicoyogui. CC BY-NC 2.0
Another part of Uruguayan culture worth learning about is gaucho culture, which was formed around the romanticized idea of a horse riding hero of the land who cannot be tamed. One standout detail of gaucho culture is the drinking of yerba mate, a bitter tea one drinks from a modified gourd. While the traditional gaucho is no longer as prevalent, modern-day gauchos can be found working on estancias, cattle ranches that can span hundreds of acres. With meat, especially beef, a major component of the Uruguayan economy, these estancias are extremely important. Nowadays, some gauchos have joined the tourist industry in Uruguay and are open to hosting visitors or providing guided rides where they can educate others about their culture.
Phoebe Jacoby
is a Media Studies major and Studio Art minor at Vassar College who believes in the importance of sharing stories with others. Phoebe likes to spend her free time reading, drawing, and writing letters. She hopes to continue developing her skills as a writer and create work that will have a positive outward effect.
Amazon River. Naldo Arruda. C.C. 2.0
The Indigenous populations of the Americas have been decimated by diseases brought by colonizers for centuries. With the first case of Coronavirus among Brazil’s Indigenous population identified on April 1st, the trend continues. They are under considerable risk of an outbreak spiraling out of control. Brazil’s President, Jair Bolsonaro, has time and time again placed his opinion and policy against the Indigenous peoples of the Amazon. Their resources and social environment are not fit to handle a pandemic. The outbreak could have serious repercussions.
One of Bolsonaro’s first actions in office was an assault on protections of the Amazon, exploiting Indigenous land and putting their populations at risk in the process. Later, he admitted to fueling fires in the Amazon to clear land for agriculture. This has caused severe damage to the local populations and the ecosystem. Their lands are being taken and their communities destroyed for the sake of corporate profit.
Bolsonaro has a history of racism against the Indigenous people of the country. He once stated: “It’s a shame that the Brazilian cavalry hasn’t been as efficient as the Americans, who exterminated the Indians,” one of many such remarks. He has permitted illegal loggers to seize and raid territory in the Amazon, which alongside the health risks of the virus, has lead Brazil’s Federal Public Ministry to warn of the “risk of genocide.”
Bolsonaro has displayed little care about Coronavirus. He has called it “a little flu” and has urged Brazilians to leave isolation and go back to work. This is in a country that has reported 22,720 cases and 1,270 deaths as of April 13. His lack of regard for both taking the necessary precautions against Coronavirus and protecting the Indigenous communities in the territory project a very dangerous situation in Brazil.
The Indigenous territories of the Amazon do not have the resources to fight this battle alone.
Their communities have very limited access to healthcare. People often live in close quarters with each other. Not to mention that 107 groups who have no contact with the outside world and would have no means to deal with an outbreak. And that doctors pose the risk of spreading the disease further.
Indigenous populations have a history of disease decimating their populations, and given the lack of resources and government response, there is a great possibility of Coronavirus dealing massive damage. Karl Marx said that history repeats itself, “the first as tragedy, then as farce.” Without a government to turn to, this situation is seemingly in the hands of non-profit groups and Brazilians willing to step up and help their fellow compatriots.
Arlo O’Blaney
Arlo grew up in New York City and is currently a Human Rights major at Bard College. He intends on using this background to pursue a career in journalism. He almost played D3 Lacrosse but realized how bad of an idea that was.
Rogerio Cavalheiro/Shuttershock
On Monday November 18, Brazilian indigenous group Tupinambá de Olivença won a battle to prevent a luxury resort from being built on its land. Portuguese hotel group Vila Gale had been planning to build a 500-room resort on the Bahia coast — land the tribe used for gathering food. The Tupinambá land is popular among tourists for its beaches lined with coconut trees, making it a prime location for a resort, but pressure on Vila Gale caused it to withdraw its construction plans.
Despite Vila Gale’s attempt to deny the presence of indigenous people on the land meant for construction, a leaked document published in October shows just the opposite. In this letter, Embratur, a Brazilian tourism agency, asked the government not to classify the land as a reserve for indigenous people so that the resort could bring investments of $200 million and create 2,000 jobs.
In the aftermath of the letter being published, pressure from the Portuguese press, Portuguese political party Bloco da Esquerda, and anthropologist and Tupinambá expert Susana Viegas, Vila Gale canceled its plans.
The tribe is still awaiting the final sign-off from the Ministry of Justice and president Bolsonaro that would designate its land as a reserve . The president, however, has previously expressed his reluctance to designate more territory for indigenous groups.
Eben Diskin is a staff writer for Matador Network
THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MATADOR NETWORK
Plastic Bank is a global network of micro-recycling markets that empower the poor to transcend poverty by cleaning the environment. Operating in Haiti, the Philippines, Indonesia and Brazil, it works like this…. Locals collect plastic trash, bring it to recycling centers where it is exchanged for cash.
Read MoreThe Amazon Rainforest is currently burning and has been for weeks, while little to no coverage has been given to the immediate and dire situation.
Fire. Cullan Smith. Unsplash.
The Amazon is on fire and has been for a little over a month. According to the World Wildlife Fund, “40,000 different types of plants” are estimated to have been affected by the fires raging in the Amazon. The Amazon fires have been burning for a while now, but coverage on the fires has been little to none. Now, though, through the outcry on social media, attention has been brought and countries across the globe are pitching in, trying to do their part in reversing and stopping the fires.
According to a NY Times article, “Hours after leaders of some of the world’s wealthiest countries pledged more than $22 million to help combat fires in the Amazon rainforest, Brazil’s government angrily rejected the offer, in effect telling the other nations to mind their own business — only to later lay out potential terms for the aid’s acceptance and then, on Tuesday evening, accepting some aid from Britain.”
Denying the aid could prove detrimental to the people and animals living in the Amazon forest. According to a CNN video, Daniel Aristizabel, a member of the Amazon Conservation team, states that the fires are affecting tons of the wildlife in the Amazon, stating “if you lose one species, you cause a chain reaction”. This “chain reaction” can cause a major shift in our ecosystem and possibly put many animals on the endangered species list.
Being far-removed from the fires makes it difficult to understand the scope and how big of areas the fires are covering. In an ABC video, Andres Ruzo from National Geographic Explorer and Conservationist and also the Director of the Boiling River Project states that “we could be losing, in certain areas, as much as 3 soccer fields of jungle every single minute”. The rate at which the Amazon is burning is huge and will have an impact on ourselves. To put the size in perspective, CNN reporter also adds that the amount of land burning is equivalent to “two thirds the size of the contenential United States”. The Amazon Rainforest has often been called the lungs of the Earth but now they are clogged with smoke.
Senior VP of Forests, WWF, Kerry Cesareo, states “we have seen a dramatic increase in deforestation in the Amazon, recently, and it is driven by humans and this is happening in part due to demand for food and other resources from the forests and exacerbated by the decline and enforcement of laws”. The apparent need for land for farming is the reason behind the fires. A great need for profit and resources are killing the Earth’s lungs.
If you would like to contribute to the efforts of saving the Amazon rainforest, you can donate to Protect and Acre Fund at https://act.ran.org/page/11127/donate/1 which “has distributed more than one million dollars in grants to more than 150 frontline communities, indigenous-led organizations, and allies, helping their efforts to secure protection for millions of acres of traditional territory in forests around the world.” You can also reduce your wood, paper, and beef consumption as those are the top reasons deforestation is currently happening to the Amazon.
OLIVIA HAMMOND is an undergraduate at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. She studies Creative Writing, with minors in Sociology/Anthropology and Marketing. She has travelled to seven different countries, most recently studying abroad this past summer in the Netherlands. She has a passion for words, traveling, and learning in any form.
Graffiti commemorating Rio de Janeiro city councillor Marielle Franco who was shot dead in an apparent assassination. Emanoelle Lima/photo by Catherine McNamara, Author provided
Jair Bolsonaro was elected president of Brazil in October 2018 and took office in January 2019. Since then, the Ministry of Women, Family and Human Rights has chosen to remove the legal protection status of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) people. Some politicians are now pushing for a ban on talking about gender diversity and sexual orientation in schools.
Bathroom laws pertaining to which toilet facilities trans people are allowed to use and bills defining what constitutes a family, same sex marriage and laws enabling trans people to change their legal name are also seen to be under threat.
Brazil has a reputation as one of the most violent countries in the world and is known as the LGBT “murder capital” – 167 trans people were reported murdered between October 1, 2017 and September 30, 2018 alone. In the lead up to and since Bolsonaro’s election, LGBT hate crime has increased.
No wonder that many Brazilian LGBTQ people are worried that they are becoming isolated from the rest of the world. Marielle Franco – a young politician who took a strong stance against police violence – was murdered in Rio de Janeiro in March 2018.
She was a bisexual black woman who grew up in the Maré favela and pushed for social justice for marginalised people in the city. She was reportedly targeted by professional killers.
In Brazil, military police patrol the streets and are independent from the municipal police who carry out investigations. In March 2019, a year after her murder, it was reported that two ex-military police had been arrested for the killing.
Theusa Passareli – a 21-year-old art student who identified as genderqueer or non-binary – was murdered in April 2018, killed on their way home from a party.
Their work was incomplete in Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janiero’s design studio when I visited in November 2018 and will stay to commemorate their memory, as the university and the trans community mourn the murder of another young person.
Resin on glass by Theusa Passareli. Catherine McNamara, Author provided
A safe place to protest
I was in Rio for a short residency with the TransArte festival – a three day art show that explores gender identity and sexuality. The festival brings together trans people and allies to exchange ideas, make and share work, and celebrate the strengths of the LGBT community in Brazil within a place of safety.
It’s not easy to protest when faced with violence, nor is it easy to enjoy culture – particularly for people living in poverty where basic needs are difficult to meet. Trans artists have said that being trans is a barrier to participating in the arts, but “safe spaces” such as the TransArte festival allow protest art to flourish and create opportunities for LGBTQ people to express themselves.
Trans and LGB artists, activists and educators from Rio de Janeiro and London. TransArte Festival Team, Author provided
Trans and LGB artists, activists and educators from Rio de Janeiro and London. TransArte Festival Team, Author provided
A theatre company led by trans people created Come As You Are – a series of autobiographical stories with physical theatre and improvisation. The stories were about family – supportive and loving family as a source of strength, and familial rejection as a result of being trans.
They explored life as trans men and women in a culture of toxic masculinity, normativity and police brutality. A photography exhibition of several artists included Bernardo de Castro Gomes, whose work also explored his identity as a black trans man facing intimidation, harassment and violence.
Queer drag artists such as Le Circo de la Drag spoke about their political performance – using their bodies to resist toxic masculinity and defy the threats of violence they often receive.
Le Circo de la drag pay tribute to Marielle Franco and Theusa Passareli. Marianna Cartaxo, Author provided
The show Monster, Whore, Bitch – Waldirene’s Dreams, directed by Dandara Vital, compiled the everyday experiences of Brazilian trans people interwoven with a re-telling of the story of Waldirene – the first trans woman to undergo gender reassignment surgery in Brazil in December 1971, at the height of the military dictatorship.
Resistance is clearly flourishing in Brazil against the odds and not only within festivals like TransArte. A Portuguese translation of Jo Clifford’splay The Gospel According to Jesus, Queen of Heaven was due to open in Londrina, a city in southern Brazil, but the venue cancelled at the very last moment.
The lead, a trans woman called Renata Carvalho, received death threats. The company moved to a semi-derelict space where they performed by torchlight instead, despite injunctions from both Pentecostal and Catholic groups to stop the production.
My own experiences working with the TransArte festival team in Rio have shown me the value of safe places free from judgement and hostility. The people we worked with told us that being there in solidarity with the trans communities of Rio felt like a powerful action in itself, resisting the culture of violence that thrives in Bolsonaro’s Brazil.
CATHERINE MCNAMARA is Head of School (Art, Design and Performance) at the Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries at the University of Portsmouth.
THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON THE CONVERSATION.
Photo of the Brazilian flag by by Rafaela Biazi on Unsplash.
Last week, more than 4,000 indigenous people from over 300 tribes across Brazil gathered in Brasilia to set up camp in front of government buildings for three days of cultural celebrations and protest.
While the Free Land protest is an annual event, it has taken on a new significance this year under president Jair Bolsonaro and his far-right government’s encroachment on the rights of native people and their territories. Al Jazeera writes that according to The Articulation of the Indigenous People of Brazil (APIB), the central organizer of the gathering, this year the event occurs in a "very grave context".
Recently, Bolsonaro promised to stop the development of new indigenous reserves, and to revoke the protected status of established land reserves. Bolsonaro has even gone so far as to publicly question the need for indigenous reserves at all.
The Guardian writes that among the new far-right government’s projects is a movement to enable commercial farming and mining on indigenous reserves. One of the reserves targeted is the Yanomami territory, Brazil’s largest reserve which already experiences threats from illegal gold miners.
“We are defenders of the land, we are defenders of the Amazon, of the forest,” Alessandra Munduruku, one of the representatives of the Munduruku tribe told the Guardian. “The white man is [...] finishing off our planet and we want to defend it.”
Instead of directly handling the demarcation of Brazil’s indigenous reserves, the government has given the project to the agriculture ministry, a branch controlled by the farming lobby, a powerful organization which has been known to oppose indigenous land rights (Guardian). Joenia Wapichana, the first indigenous congresswoman in Brazil, told Al Jazeera that during her time in office she had become aware of just how deeply the government was to indigenous rights. “The government is completely anti-indigenous,” she said, “[Jair Bolsonaro] is only open to those who defend mining and land grabbing, which is his intention.”
After days of encampment outside government buildings, indigenous groups began their annual march last friday. Protestors wore body paint and feathered headdresses, while beating beating drums and holding bows and arrows (Reuters).
The Guardian writes that last week Bolsonaro’s justice minister Sérgio Moro, requested the presence of Brazil’s national guard at the event, foreshadowing possible clashes with protestors. While Moro said that the guard would be working to “secure the public order and the safety of people and patrimony,” the guard said in a statement to Al Jazeera that it would use force “if necessary” to protect the “safety of the patrimony of the Union and its servers.”
In response to growing concern, the APIB released a statement saying that “our camp has been happening peacefully for the past 15 years to give visibility to our daily struggles. [...] We are not violent, violence is attacking our sacred right to free protesting with armed forces.”
In a statement to Reuters, David Karai Popygua, a native person from the state of Sao Paulo, summed up what is at stake for protestors. “Our families are in danger, our children are under threat, our people are being attacked,” he said. “In the name of what they call economic progress they want to kill our people.”
EMMA BRUCE is an undergraduate student studying English and marketing at Emerson College in Boston. While not writing she explores the nearest museums, reads poetry, and takes classes at her local dance studio. She is passionate about sustainable travel and can't wait to see where life will take her.
Fernando Bizerra Jr. / EPA
The Brazilian government has earmarked a vast tract of Amazonian land for mining. The so-called “Renca” reserve sits in the last great wilderness area in the eastern Amazon and contains lots of unique rainforest wildlife. The controversial decision to allow mining has since been rewritten to clarify that development cannot take place on indigenous lands that lie within the “Renca”, and then put on hold by a federal judge, pending support from congress.
Protected areas such as the Renca are under threat right across the Amazon, and many have already been downsized or downgraded. Conservation is undermined by chronic underfunding of the national environmental protection agencies, the devolving of environmental enforcement to regional states that cannot cope, and by rural violence so severe that Brazil leads the world in assassinations of environmentalists.
The result of all this is an Amazon where 90% of logging is illegal and deforestation is increasing, where unprecedented wildfires burn each summer, and where large vertebrates are now going extinct for the first time since the Pleistocene.
Brazil says mining and logging will boost national economic growth. Yet people in the Amazon remain some of the poorest and most marginalised in South America, and there is little evidence this kind of development has enhanced their quality of life. For example, the municipalities of Eldorado dos Carajás, Marabá, and Paraupebas, all of which surround large mining operations, have a human development index lower than that of Libya, a country stricken by civil war. And the construction of the controversial Belo Monte dam resulted in the regional capital of Altamira attaining the highest per capita homicide rate in all of Brazil, equivalent to 25 murders a day if scaled to a city the size of London.
First, the companies driving the change are generally big multinationals based either in and around Rio and São Paulo (1,700 miles away) or abroad. Despite some municipal taxes, only a tiny portion of the profits remain locally.
Carajás Mine, the largest iron ore mine in the world, is found within the Carajás National Forest (pictured above). T photography / Shutterstock
Development, as currently practised, also favours the wealthy over the poor. When protected areas are downgraded the chief beneficiaries are landholders who are able to log or mine their territory. Other social groups aren’t so lucky. Some are even actively attacked – either directly, as occurred in the assassination of ten landless movement squatters in a large Amazonian farm, or through legal changes, such as the downgrading of the rights of quilombolas, historical communities descended from African slaves, and indigenous peoples.
Brazil’s ongoing “car wash” corruption scandal has led to allegations of worrying links between large development projects in the Amazon, such as the Belo Monte dam, and the diversion of state funds to political parties. If the purpose of development is political gain, there can be little hope for regional citizens.
Both Amazonian people and forests would benefit if we stopped evaluating development schemes solely in terms of the profits they could generate. This sort of narrow, economic assessment cannot truly capture the value of the Amazon’s forests: how do you put a price on conserving unique species, or mitigating global climate change?
The Guianan Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola rupicola) is one of northern Amazonia’s more spectacular inhabitants. Alexander Lees, Author provided
The forests of the Renca are some of the most dense and slow-growing in the Amazon basin. Even deforesting just 30% of the area would effectively emit more than four billion tonnes of CO₂ into the atmosphere – equivalent to Brazil’s entire fossil fuel emissions over the past ten years. Unless climate change forms part of the decision making process in the region, Brazil will fail to meet its international commitments such as the Paris agreement.
Development must also secure constitutional rights for everyone, not just those of the elites. Brazil currently has so called “differentiated citizenship”, where in practice there is a gradation of rights among citizens, depending on their race, social class or region.
Munduruku people map out their territory along the River Tapajos in Pará state. Larissa Saud, Author provided
Local action is often the only defence against the expansion of mining or dams. Recent examples of a grassroots success include the Munduruku indigenous people, who are forcing various concessions by resisting megadams on the middle Tapajós River. Another example is the practice of “counter-mapping” among indigenous peoples which entails them mapping their own territorial boundaries to defend their land from industrial agriculture, mining, dams and logging. These alternative approaches are the best way forward in the Renca too. Instead of opening up the area for mining multinationals, Brazil should recognise the rights of local people and empower them to lead decision-making. Brazil nut harvesting is already big in the local economy and, along with ecotourism and carbon-payments (being effectively paid to not chop down a forest), could deliver sustainable development, while leaving the minerals in the ground.
JOS BARLOW is a Professor of Conservation Science at Lancaster University.
ALEXANDER C. LEES is a lecturer in tropical ecology at Manchester Metropolitan University.
ERIKA BERENGUER is a Senior Research Associate at University of Oxford.
JAMES A. FRASER is a Lecturer in Political Ecology at Lancaster University.
JOICE FERREIRA is a researcher in Ecology at Federal University of Pará.
THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON THE CONVERSATION
When Andrés Ruzo was a boy, his grandfather would tell him tales of a mythical city of gold deep in the heart of the Peruvian jungle. Though never believing the stories to be true, the legend of the lost city stuck with him into adulthood. Years later, as a geothermal scientist, Ruzo decided to investigate. To his surprise, he discovered an incredulous river deep in the Amazon, with water hot enough to kill a human. Historically a place of pilgrimage for shamans and sorcerers, the river now faces increasing threats from poachers, loggers and squatters. Now, Ruzo is working hard to protect it.
A year ago, Yury Sharov was asked to go to Rio with a couple of musicians from London to make a music video for their song, capturing their holidays on the IPanema beach. After the video was done, Yury had a lot of material that was not used and decided to make this short video about all the sides of Rio.
Black women in Brazil protest presidential frontrunner Jair Bolsonaro, who is known for his disparaging remarks about women, on Sept. 29, 2018. AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo
Motivated in part by President Donald Trump’s disparaging remarks about women and the numerous claims that he committed sexual assault, American women are running for state and national office in historic numbers. At least 255 women are on the ballot as major party congressional candidates in the November general election.
The surge includes a record number of women of color, many of whom say their candidacies reflect a personal concern about America’s increasingly hostile, even violent, racial dynamics. In addition to the 59 black female congressional candidates, Georgia’s Stacey Abrams hopes to become her state’s first black governor.
The U.S. is not the only place where the advance of racism and misogyny in politics has has spurred black women to run for office at unprecedented levels.
In Brazil, a record 1,237 black women will be on the ballot this Sunday in the country’s Oct. 7 general election.
I’m a scholar of black feminism in the Americas, so I have been closely watching Brazil’s 2018 campaign season – which has been marked by controversy around race and gender – for parallels with the United States.
Last weekend, hundreds of thousands of Brazilian women marched nationwide against the far-right presidential frontrunner Jair Bolsonaro, under the banner of #EleNao – #NotHim.
Bolsonaro, a pro-gun, anti-abortion congressman with strong evangelical backing, once told a fellow congressional representative that she “didn’t deserve to be raped” because she was “terrible and ugly.”
Bolsonaro has seen a boost in the polls since he was stabbed at a campaign rally on Sept. 8 in a politically motivated attack.
Protests in Rio de Janeiro against Jair Bolsonaro on Sept. 29, organized under the hashtag #EleNao (#NotHim). AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo
Brazil has shifted rightward since 2016, when the left-leaning female president Dilma Rousseff was ousted in a partisan impeachment process that many progressives regard as a political coup.
Her successor, then-Vice President Michel Temer, quickly passed an austerity budget that reversed many progressive policies enacted under Rousseff and her predecessor, Workers Party founder Luís Inácio “Lula” da Silva.
The move decimated funding for agencies and laws that protect women, people of color and the very poor.
In Brazil, these three categories – women, people of color and the very poor – tend to overlap.
Brazil, which has more people of African descent than most African nations, was the largest slaveholding society in the Americas. Over 4 million enslaved Africans were forcibly taken to the country between 1530 and 1888.
Brazil’s political, social and economic dynamics still reflect this history.
Though Brazil has long considered itself colorblind, black and indigenous Brazilians are poorer than their white compatriots. Black women also experience sexual violence at much higher rates than white women – a centuries-old abuse of power that dates back to slavery.
Afro-Brazilians – who make up just over half of Brazil’s 200 million people, according to the 2010 census – are also underrepresented in Brazilian politics, though sources disagree on exactly how few black Brazilians hold public office.
Three Afro-Brazilians serve in the Senate, including one woman. In the 513-member lower Chamber of Deputies, about 20 percent identify as black or brown. Women of color hold around 1 percent of seats in the Chamber of Deputies.
That could change on Sunday.
This year, 9,204 of the 27,208 people running for office across Brazil are women, which reflects a law requiring political parties to nominate at least 30 percent women. About 13 percent of female candidates in 2018 are Afro-Brazilian.
A campaign ad for Rio city council member Talíria Petrone, who is running for Congress.Facebook
In most Brazilian states, that’s a marked increase over Brazil’s last general election, in 2014, according to the online publication Congresso em Foco.
In São Paulo, Brazil’s most populous state, 105 black women ran for office in 2014. This year, 166 are. In Bahia state, there are 106 black female candidates for political office, versus 59 in 2014. The number has likewise doubled in Minas Gerais, from 51 in 2014 to 105 this year.
As in the United States, Brazil’s black wave may be a direct response to alarming social trends, including sharp rises in gang violence and police brutality, both of which disproportionately affect black communities.
But many female candidates in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s second largest city, say one specific event inspired them to run.
In March, Marielle Franco, an Afro-Brazilian human rights activist and Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman, was assassinated – the 11th Brazilian activist to be murdered since November 2017.
Franco’s murder remains unsolved, but she was an outspoken critic of the military occupation of Rio’s poor, mostly black favela neighborhoods. The ongoing police investigation has implicated government agents in the shooting, which also killed her driver.
Her death unleashed an avalanche of activism among black women in Rio de Janeiro, with new groups offering fundraising and political training for female candidates of color.
On Sunday, 231 black women from Rio de Janeiro state will stand for election in local, state and federal races – more than any other state in Brazil and more than double the number who ran in 2014.
Black women may have been historically excluded from Brazil’s formal political arena, but they have been a driving force for social and political change since the country’s transition from dictatorship to democracy in 1985.
Decades before #MeToo, Brazilian women of color were on the front lines of activism around issues like gender-based violence, sexual harassment and abortion.
The March 2018 assassination of Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman, Marielle Franco, spurred a wave of black women running for local and federal office in Brazil. Reuters/Ricardo Moraes
Brazil has hundreds of black women’s groups. Some, including Geledes, a center for public policy, are mainstays of the Brazilian human rights movement. The founder of the Rio de Janeiro anti-racism group Criola, Jurema Werneck, is now the director of Amnesty International in Brazil.
The fact that thousands of black women, both veteran activists and political newcomers, will appear on the ballot on Sunday is testament to their efforts.
As in the United States, black Brazilian women’s demand for political representation is deeply personal. They have watched as their mostly male and conservative-dominated congresses chipped away at hard-won protections for women and people of color in recent years, exposing the fragility of previous decades’ progress on race and gender.
Black women in Brazil and the U.S. know that full democracy hinges on full participation. By entering into politics, they hope to foster more inclusive and equitable societies for all.
KIA LILLY CALDWELL is a Professor of African, African American, and Diaspora Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON THE CONVERSATION
