MISSION
The DJ SCHOOL/LEADERSHIP PROGRAM works to empower the citizens of Rocinha by encouraging and supporting local arts, music and cultural programs. We’re working to establish a DJ SCHOOL/LEADERSHIP PROGRAM and secure other institutional resources around which local clubs, programs, and organizations may grow and thrive.
VISION
We envision a community in which individuals recognize and exercise their power to promote positive social change. By using the art of DJ’ing we hope to involve youth in a unique art form and also help to boost self esteem. Our project will also include a business side to teach youth about entrepreneurship.
BACKGROUND
One of the primary goals set forth by the DJ SCHOOL/LEADERSHIP PROJECT is to obtain a space within Rocinha around which to structure school and serve as an anchor point for our social outreach work. Many arts and cultural organizations already exist in Rocinha, and are run and organized by very talented and entrepreneurial individuals. However, many of these programs are under-funded and lack basic resources — specifically, office and studio space. DJ SCHOOL/LEADERSHIP PROJECT has identified many of these “homeless” organizations.
In the future the DJ SCHOOL/LEADERSHIP PROJECT hopes to expand to a full media center which will include a recording studio, photography classes and film making. We have spoken to photographers and film makers about our plans and have their 100% support. The DJ SCHOOL/LEADERSHIP PROJECT hopes to meet the needs of such groups and organizations in Rocinha, while encouraging the development of new programs and organizations, enabling individuals to continue and grow in their work so that they themselves may play an active role in social outreach in their own communities.
Favelas, and the Favela of ROCINHA
A favela is an informal squatter settlement where residents have often constructed their own homes without the aid of city planning or established city infrastructure. They are neighborhoods of extreme poverty, and although usually have basic utilities such as electricity and plumbing, the systems are often informal, and inadequate. Streets and walkways are also constructed haphazardly, and can prove difficult to navigate, often consisting of awkwardly place steps or having gaping holes that drop off into the makeshift sewer system below.
Rio de Janeiro is unique in that many of its favelas are located adjacent to neighborhoods of extreme affluence, such as the famous Ipanema or Copacabana districts, presenting a very dramatic, and very visible, disparity in standards of living. Most of the favelas in Rio have been built on the rocky, mountainous terrain of the hills that stretch down the backbone of city, while the wealthier neighborhoods lie just below in the flatlands that extend towards the seashore.
In addition to the poverty, most of the favelas in Rio are commandeered by Rio’s infamous drug factions. Rival factions control different favelas, and territorial battles fought with military-grade arms ensue. Drugs and guns are commonplace in the favela, but surprisingly violence against favela residents is minimal. The drug factions “look after” the favela community, impose community law, and sponsor local dances and parties featuring “baile funk” music, a genre unique to Rio de Janeiro. The drug factions have filled the “power vacuum” in favela communities, where Rio’s debilitated (and often corrupt) police force has failed to provide. Many factions have agreements with the local police, and they usually steer clear of one another.
The favela of Rocinha is located in Zona Sul (the south zone) of Rio de Janeiro, perched alongside the rocky peak of Dois Irmãos (”Two Brothers”) and bordering the affluent neighborhoods of Gávea and São Conrado. Rocinha spreads over an area of roughly one square mile, most of that slopes of steep incline, and is home to an estimated population of 60,000 to 150,000 individuals.
For an excellent account of Rocinha and its history, please see Mundo Real’s site (friends who run another great nonprofit in Rocinha).
Mundo Real Website: http://www.1mundoreal.org.
Contact
For more information please contact: info@favelatour.org