Stories: Providencia
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The Contradiction of Brazil’s ‘Favelas’
In Brazil, slum tours are common in shanty towns known in the country as favelas. Brazil’s government has encouraged the tours as a way of earning money for a people said to live in some of the world’s most violent areas. Theresa Williamson stands at the foot of several stairs leading into Rio de Janeiro&rsquo...;
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From Gunfights to ‘Mansions’: Inside Rio de Janeiro’s Smorgasbord of Favelas
Just 50 days before Brazil hosts the World Cup, authorities beefed up security Wednesday in Rio de Janeiro after a violent clash between residents and police in a slum near the tourist haven of Copacabana beach. Turning the corner on a narrow, uneven footpath, a small white chapel comes into view in a plaza surrounded by whitewashed buildings with blue tile...
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A Look Inside Rio De Janeiro’s Oldest Favela, Threatened by Gentrification and the 2016 Olympics
Brazil's favelas are translated as "slums" in English, but they're really more comparable to U.S. public housing. Favelas are more than just a place to live--they're often tight-knit communities inhabited by families who have lived there for generations. Nowhere is this more true than in Providencia, which at an age of over 100 years, is the oldest...