Stories about Brazil from December, 2008
Global Health: 2008 Blogs In Review
Bloggers in 2008 showed all the ways in which global health is interconnected with other issues, by covering health stories that touched on everything from poverty and women's rights to the environment and economics. They shared stories such as the prohibition of cannabis in Japan, how ads for children's food...
Americas: A Look Back at 2008
In 2008, the Latin American team from Global Voices helped add context and helped highlight voices of bloggers that wrote about the numerous news stories that took place across the region. From the election of an ex-bishop in Paraguay to the march against the FARC in Colombia, bloggers provided their thoughts on natural disasters, protests, strikes, and important events across the Americas.
Brazil: Chico Mendes lives on, 20 years after his death
Bloggers remember and pay homage to Chico Mendes, the man whose actions highlighted the plight of the Amazon internationally, and who was murdered twenty years ago by those who were opposed to his activism.
Brazil: Against Illegal Abortion or Against Women?
Abortion is a very complex issue in Brazil, just like almost everywhere else in Latin America, where it is considered a crime. Despite this, over 1,000,000 clandestine abortions take place in Brazil and over 70,000 women die of complications from clandestine abortion attempts every year. Daniel Duende takes a look at the new moves in the clash between pro-life and pro-choice movements.
Japan, Brazil: A centenary of Japanese Immigration to Brazil.
In June 1908, the Japanese ship Kasato Maru docked in the Port of Santos after a 52-day voyage, bringing the first Japanese families to Brazil. A hundred years later and after a hard period of adaptation, Japanese and Japanese-Brazilians reflect on the history and cultural heritage of this cross ocean cultural mix.
Cuba, U.S.A.: Lat Am & Caribbean Leaders Meet
“You could call it the independence summit”: The Cuban Triangle takes a look at the meeting of Latin American and Caribbean leaders in Brazil, adding that it “seems to have been about independence from Washington and a big way of expressing that independence was opposition to U.S. policy toward Cuba.”
Brazil: Manifesto For The Immediate Release of Graffiti Painter
While a police officer who mistakenly killed a boy of just three has been acquitted of murder, a graffiti painter arrested on October 26 for spraying the walls of the Art Bienal of São Paulo's pavilion spent her 24th birthday in jail. Bloggers comment on the ironies and discrepancies of the Brazilian judicial system.
Cuba, Brazil, U.S.A.: Composer Honoured
AfriClassical is thrilled that the Brazilian city of Sao Paolo is honouring renowned Cuban composer Leo Brouwer.
Brazil: Introducing the Offline Twitter
Lúcia Malla [pt] and a group of friends – all of whom have twitter accounts – show what happens when twitter addicts meet in a bar: they keep twiterring offline. See the pictures. “Experiment's general conclusion: the more difficult thing on the offline twitter is to design your avatar. ;) ...
Brazilian Police Literally Gets Away with Murder
At the moment when the world was celebrating Human Rights Day, and exactly when a similar crime sparks riots in Greece, Brazilian bloggers cry out against yet another death caused by the disastrous approach of the police going unpunished in Rio de Janeiro - this time the victim was a boy of just three.
Brazil: Deadly chemical leak kills 80 ton fish in Rio de Janeiro
On November 18, a leak of deadly endosulfan pesticide into the Pirapetinga river killed over 80 tonnes of fish, plus water hogs, tortoises, birds, and others creatures. The tragedy was worsened by the fact that it happened during breeding season for many species, some of which are under threat of extinction. After a suspension of 20 days only, the company responsible for the accident resumed operations today. Bloggers react.
Brazil: How to become Santa Claus in four weeks
Anton M. Steeman describes one of the many courses in Brazil that leads to qualified Santa Clauses, a welcome Christmas temporary job. “The most difficult part of being a good Santa Claus is the hours and hours sitting in a chair, showing a slight smile, taking punches and pushes, a...
Paraguay: Dependence on Brazil for Bridge Costs
A new bridge over the Paraná River will join Paraguay and Brazil. However, the costs will be financed entirely by Brazil, and Michael Quomo of Zoopolitica [es] believes that it makes his country of Paraguay to be dependent, means “condescension” and “creates informal subordination links.”
Video:What image opened your eyes to human rights?
The sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is on December 10th, and Witness' The Hub team has put together a video that responds to the question: What images have opened your eyes to Human Rights? The video is online right now and with it they are asking all of us to participate by showing and telling the world about the power images have had in making us care about Human Rights.
About our Brazil coverage
Fernanda Canofre is the Brazil editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.
