Vida Pulsante: Rio’s Mega-Events Footprints, Oppressions and Resistances in Maré Favelas as Pictured by Imagens do Povo Photographers (original) (raw)

Mega-events constitute crucial happenings in the life of a host city. Rio de Janeiro was chosen for 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics, the last ones of a long series. This research, conducted during the interval between the two happenings, questioned their alleged ‘legacy’ by instead investigating the negative impacts, hereby conceptualised as ‘footprints’. How are mega-events leaving a footprint, affecting Maré – a set of favelas in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone – and its artists’ activities and ways of resistance? This research made a case of critically contrasting the geography of globalisation and capital (Harvey, Sassen) with the bio-political and state of exception theories (Klein, Agamben), in order to localise the magnitude of mega-events, global trends, media and aesthetics disputes (Jaguaribe, Rancière) in the daily lives of contextually adverse favelas. Indeed, while the position of favelados (favela residents) might be seen as disconnected or threatened – e.g. by crimilitarisation (militarisation of repression coupled with criminalisation of poverty and social movements), pacification and gentrification – it also revealed the rise of transversal and overlapping networks – e.g. organisations and collectives positioning themselves as resistance in the dynamics of oppression. Mega-events were therefore the stage of this inquiry into the interplays of Rio and its favelas, reflected in the case-study of Maré, which was also framed in the context of South Zone real estate speculation, and North Zone military occupations. Mega-event footprints and resistance were thus explored looking at Maré artists. Specifically, Imagens do Povo photographers showed in words and pictures their vocation for the empathetic portrayal of daily life over shocking, stigmatising depictions of favelas. Lastly, this case-study reflected upon the wrestled control over favelas, questioning the future of urbanisation and pacification plans, and the favelados fights for rights, trusting in Imagens do Povo (Images of the People) as a sign of hope and resistance. ‘Vida pulsante’ (pulsating life) is therefore a dedication to the quotidian sprightliness of life in favelas.