Article April 26, 2010 Issue

EXPERIENCE THE WONDERS OF GOD!

BY LEIDE LESSA

"WONDERFUL CITY, FULL OF A THOUSAND DELIGHTS, wonderful city, heart of my Brazil." All Brazilians know this song composed by André Filho for the 1935 Carnival. This song has been sung over and over again, by famous singers, by people on the streets, in cafes, homes, schools. This song and its contagious melody are such an instrinsic part of Brazilian culture that "wonderful city" became a nickname for Rio de Janeiro—and nobody questions the natural beauty of the song or the city. But Rio is also classified as one of the ten most dangerous cities in the world.

Some historians affirm that the first slum in Rio started over a century ago. Today, most of the people living in the slums share the same breathtaking view of the beaches that wealthy people living in luxurious condos have. More than one million people, many of them children and young people, live in Rio's slums. If these children and young people get involved with the organized drug commerce, some statistics show they have a life expectancy of less than 24 years.