Monday, April 16, 2007

In Rio Death Comes Early

Why would I be posting a story about violence in the slums of Rio de Janeiro on a site dedicated to preserving the American Middle Class? I see many parallels between the growing violence in Rio and the growing violence in our inner cities. My partner is from Brazil and I have been there many times. It is a gorgeous country with many dichotomies. It has an enormous gap between rich and poor and it is this gap that fuels so much of its societies ills. Our own nation is seeing a growing gap between rich and poor as the middle class is being slowly dismantled. We are seeing the increase in street gangs that Rio has been dealing with for years and with this increase comes more violence. How can we expect a different outcome as the gap between rich and poor continues to grow in this nation. What future are we offering our young poor that would turn them away from this type of violence? Do we want our inner cities to become our favelas?

Read the article here.

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