Spotlight Brazil: Local Community Center Provides Safe Haven for Children
Afternoons at Casa da Cultura have changed Lorrane de Santo’s life. Now 11 years old, Lorrane began attending Casa da Cultura when she was seven. Designed to offer children in the poor community a safe place to go, Casa da Cultura's afternoon circus classes allowed Lorrane the opportunity to discover her love for gymnastics. Today, Lorrane dreams of becoming a professional gymnast and recently came in first place at a national competition.
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Lorrane credits Casa da Cultura and its partnership with ActionAid for getting her to where she is today.
“I think Casa da Cultura is really good because it is where I first started,” she said. “I hope to be an important athlete when I get older. I know that [ActionAid’s support] helps other children like me to keep off the streets and have chances like those that Casa da Cultura gives us.”
The foundation’s roots trace back to the 1960s when favelas, or slums, began to overrun the city of Rio de Janeiro. As a stopgap measure, the Brazilian government moved many poor families into government housing in Baixada Fluminense, a sprawling suburb on the city’s outskirts. Unfortunately, due to government neglect, the newly built communities transformed into the very slums they set out to replace. Physical and social exclusion from the city also limited economic opportunities for the suburban residents and violent drug gangs flourished.
In the 1980s, local leaders initiated a community mobilization campaign. Within 10 years, the campaign had developed into a full-fledged community organization, providing activities and cultural space for the area’s poor and excluded children. Today, in addition to holding after-school activities and providing safety from street violence, Casa da Cultura, provides activities such as dance, computer skills classes and Capoeira -- an Afro-Brazilian art form that combines dance and martial arts.
The celebration of Afro-Brazilian culture is an important aspect of Casa da Cultura, which is located in a predominantly black and multi race community. While racism still exists in Brazil, children are experiencing cultural empowerment at Casa da Cultura.
As Casa da Cultura has grown into an influential force, ActionAid’s support has enabled the staff to improve their efficiency, and expand and diversify their supporter base.
Children practice walking the tightrope at Casa da Cultura in São João de Meriti, Brazil. Casa da Cultura plays a vital role in giving poor children and their families’ new skills and opportunities.
Copyright © EduardoMartino/Documentography/ActionAid
“ActionAid’s involvement with Casa da Cultura has been fundamental in getting us to where we are today,” explains Diestefano Sant’Anna di Lima, the general coordinator for Casa da Cultura who has been with the organization for 10 years. “Now, other smaller organizations come to us for advice.”
Casa da Cultura’s biggest influence may be the change it has sparked beyond its walls. Ten years ago, the organization started a hotline connecting survivors of domestic violence with local organizations that could assist them. While perpetrators of domestic violence were rarely punished when the hotline first opened, today they are and the local government is now running the hotline.
While Casa da Cultura was one of the first of its kind in Baixada Fluminense, it has inspired the creation of similar centers. The number of centers has grown from one for every 13,000 children in Baixada Fluminense to one center for every 3,000 children.
Lorrane’s experience at Casa da Cultura has launched her gymnastics career but for child sponsorship coordinator Nenza Mariq Pinto de Queiroz, every child that comes through the Casa da Cultura’s doors is a success.
“Even if we do not make a famous dancer or footballer ... [at] Casa da Cultura we are building happier, better adults who will become full citizens,” she said.
ActionAid’s partnerships with local organizations like Casa da Cultura are improving the lives of poor and excluded people like Lorrane.
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