Megaeventos

When it comes to hosting the Olympics, more cities are saying, ‘Hold that thought.’

Published in Wednesday May 28th, 2014 In In the media

Jon Frankel, a reporter for HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,” recently did a report on the “white elephants” left behind after a country hosts an international sporting event such as the World Cup or the Olympics.

Tags

Brazil’s evicted ‘won’t celebrate World Cup’

Published in Tuesday May 27th, 2014 In In the media

Every four years, Brazilians decorate their streets in green and yellow, celebrating the arrival of the most anticipated sports tournament in the country. With the kick-off for the FIFA World Cup in Brazil less than one month away, the country’s passion for football should be pulsating more than ever. But there are some signs to the contrary. “World Cup for whom?” read the words painted on a wall on a street in Sao Paulo.

Tags ,

People’s right to the city has been eroded by mega-event evictions in Rio de Janiero

Published in Tuesday May 13th, 2014 In Opinion

Brazil has been preparing furiously for the upcoming World Cup and 2016 Olympics. While these developments are thought to represent the country’s growing economy and rising middle class, such “progress” has come at the expense of Brazil’s poorest citizens. Sue Brownill, Ramin Keivani, and Erick Omena de Melo look at the forced evictions in Vila Autódromo to make way for Olympic venues, in spite of the residents’ legal title to their site, arguing that it is representative of global trends of market and state forces eroding people’s right to the city.

Tags , ,

Major Sporting Events and Human Rights: Host nations and cities, sports organising bodies and companies must move faster, aim higher, and show stronger resolve

Published in Thursday February 6th, 2014 In Social movement news

As the 2014 Winter Olympic Games get underway this weekend in Sochi, debates continue to intensify around the responsibilities of host nations, sports governing bodies and corporate sponsors all involved in planning and implementing major sporting events.

Tags ,

For some in Brazil, World Cup means evictions

Published in Monday January 27th, 2014 In In the media

he mega-event that will play out this summer in a dozen Brazilian cities is driving a frenzy of road construction, airport renovations and other projects. The impact is being felt most strongly among the poorest citizens, including residents of Porto Alegre’s largest favela, or slum, who have come to regard the soccer championship as synonymous with evictions, removals and demolition.

Tags , , ,

World Cup preparation means eviction for several Brazilian residents

Published in Tuesday January 14th, 2014 In In the media

At dusk, just a few days before Christmas, Veronica Maria da Silva, her husband and her brother-in-law were taking the last valuables they could out of their homes in their neighborhood of São Francisco near the city of Camaragibe. Windows and doors can be reused, but only if they’re saved before the demolition crew arrives. So the family pulled them out of the walls, leaving ragged holes behind with piles of loose brick and tile spilled over the floors.

Tags ,

Rapporteur conducts working visit in Recife, Brazil

Published in Thursday December 12th, 2013

On November 29th, the UN special rapporteur, Raquel Rolnik, conducted a working visit to Recife (Brazil). Check the photos and learn more about the visit.

Tags , , ,

Sochi Olympics documentary casts harsh light on Putin, preparations

Published in Monday December 9th, 2013 In In the media

The film profiles Sochi’s residents, many of whom have been inconvenienced by Olympic construction as others have been displaced from their own homes by force.

Tags , ,

FIFA : Make the World Cup a Fair Game for Workers

Published in Wednesday July 17th, 2013 In Social movement news

Workers employed on construction projects to prepare for the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, most of whom are migrant workers, face numerous human rights violations, according to FIDH. In a letter sent today to the President of FIFA, Mr. Joseph Sepp Blatter, FIDH recalled the sports organisation’s responsibility to investigate and remedy reports that workers are being subject to unfair payment practices, excessive work hours, racist violence, and work conditions that can amount to forced labour.

Tags ,

Brazil Tramples Poor Citizens In Its Rush To Glory

Published in Tuesday July 2nd, 2013

Brazil wanted this to be their moment in the sun — hosting the World Cup and the Olympics was meant to show the country at its best. Instead, the spotlight is being shone on glaring inequality and a culture that invests in glossy stadiums while displacing its poor. To listen to the interview, click here.

Tags ,