By hkbardo
As you may have read in my earlier posts, I had initially intended on volunteering with the organization Meninas Mães; however, upon arrival these plans unraveled for 
several reasons. Primarily, the organization is located Zona Norte (the North Zone of Rio), in the favela Complexo do Alemão, which was more recently pacified, and thus is significantly more dangerous than Rio’s other large favelas like Rocinha and Vidigal. In the past few weeks violence has escalated as the different drug trafficking factions fight over territory. The organization’s director emailed me informing that the organization is currently closed due to the heightened threats, so I had to seek out a new organization in one of the safer favelas in Zona Sur (the South Zone). Fortunately, an American woman getting her Master’s degree at my university came into my Community Development class to present the work she did for her dissertation, focused on violence against women and female empowerment. I spoke to her (Courtney) afterward and she offered to introduce me to one of the organizations she worked very closely with while volunteering and doing research.
Just as we were entering the favela, a tour group of old white people with big cameras was exiting. I was appalled by their presence and rushed past them in the hopes of avoiding any association! We began the immense climb up countless steep stairs, through narrow corridors, navigating our way through a concrete maze- it was astonishing that Courtney had the path memorized, though she confessed having gotten lost several times previously. We finally arrived at our destination breathless and sweating, and were welcomed by the NGO’s two directors, Marcia and Carminha.
The NGO is called União de Mulheres Para o Melhoramento da Roupa-Suja (UMPMRS), or translated, The Union of Women for the Bettering of Dirty Clothes. I didn’t understand this odd-seeming name until we got into Rocinha, Brazil’s largest favela (many sources determine it the largest in all of South America), and Courtney explained that within this expansive favela there exists neighborhoods with a strong sense of hierarchy among them. Roupa-Suja (Dirty Clothes) is the name of the area where UMPMRS operates, and is one of the poorest, “worst” in Rocinha (so we’re talking about the worst of the already derisory living conditions). The name itself alludes to the myriad negative connotations that accompany this neighborhood. The directors of the NGO further elucidated that since Rocinha was pacified in November of 2011, much has improved at the base of the favela, it has been given a new facade- the houses painted colorfully, the trash picked up, businesses running successfully. However, when you start getting deeper into the favela, the facade quickly wears off and the government’s neglect is glaring. Marcia called it “another reality”. Without any visibility, Roupa-Suja continues to suffer from drug-trafficking problems, Dengue, rat infestations due to the trash buildup, electricity outages, and landslides during heavy rains. Apparently even the police force treats the neighborhood differently-- whereas down below officers are relatively friendly and respectful, in Roupa-Suja the policemen monitor the area with their guns pointed in front of them, intimating passersby. Just last month they shot and killed a young boy walking innocently in the street. There is great hostility between residents and the police force, known for its own corruption in the involvement of drug trafficking.
Thus, with little governmental assistance, the dwellers of Roupa-Suja have taken matters into their own hands to protect and ameliorate their neighborhood. Within this part of the favela the drug traffickers demarcated the plot behind the church as their location to incriminate, torture and kill victims in a public arena. It was common to hear shots and screams; small children were exposed to blood and dismembered body parts- horrific sights no human being should ever have to witness. In the beginning stages of the organization, leaders of UMPMRS would go there and plead for the lives of their friends, family and neighbors. Finally one day Marcia mustered up the courage to confront the chief drug traffickers and demand the repossession of this area to be utilized as a community center rather than a community morgue. Miraculously they were granted permission to reclaim the area, ridding it of its harrowing legacy. (If anyone has more clout around here than the head drug traffickers, it is the fearless, heroic women who founded UMPMRS!). We visited this site, which they have transformed into a beautiful community center and playground, transforming the name too, cleverly, into Roupa-Feliz (Happy Clothes).
When I inquired why the founders chose to call their organization specifically a Union of Women, Marcia responded, “Who educates their children? Who feeds their families? Who takes care of the community? Women.” She added, “And women suffer more”. Marcia said they felt that this name was the most accurate description of their extensive work, which impacts the community at practically every level- from the center’s nursery, to helping an elderly member get the doctor appointment they need. Their work never seems to end.
When the power remains out for several days, it is the directors of UMPMRS who demand someone to come fix it; when a grandmother taking care of six grandchildren cannot manage to put enough food on the table, it is the women of UMPMRS who come to the rescue; when a child is afraid to leave the organization because he experiences domestic violence at home, these female leaders take him under their wing. Despite its limited resources, the organization was able to earn four students scholarships to better private schools this year, providing them with uniforms, books, and bus money as well. The organization brings teachers, psychologists, and doctors into the community to address their needs. The main building has several classrooms and playrooms for the children up to age seven who come in when they are not in school and all these children are fed a healthy meal daily. There is another building with a computer lab and classrooms for the adolescents. UMPMRS started a special Collective for Women to Study Women, which acts as a forum for the females in the community to learn about leadership, to reflect on the issues they face, and discuss solutions. I will be working with these women to plan the community’s commemoration of Mother’s Day in early May. I am also eager to assist with the creation of a similar collective for adolescents, particularly targeting drug and alcohol abuse and sexual behavior, all of which begins abnormally early within the community. I hope to help the organization plant a community garden, helping to teach the children about nature, healthy food, recycling, and the responsibilities of giving life to something. Finally, I look forward to the opportunity to help UMPMRS write grants to fund all the vital work they do in Roupa-Suja. My work begins Monday and I could not be more thrilled to be involved in this extraordinary organization, learning from these inspiring women.
Just as we were about to leave and make our way back through the maze down to the bottom of Rocinha, a favela tour came through the organization- again about 15 white people with flashy cameras around their necks and wrists, though this time they looked like they were in their 20’s and 30’s. Marcia explained to us that despite the bad wrap these tours get among many residents of the favela, the tours are actually well regarded by organizations such as UMPMRS, which, with meager resources, relies on daily donations from the tourists and any advocacy that their visits may inspire. One tour company even provides the organization with enough rice and pasta to feed all the children serviced by the org and its staff members on a monthly basis. I guess I’ll have to give a little more slack to the next tour group I encounter.