Chico Mendes Activity Center
Those who research street kids in Florianópolis discovered that some 46% come from the small favela of Monte Cristo, on the mainland and far from the center of the city. The Chico Mendes Center provides activities, support, and counseling so that these kids do not need to leave for the street. Many children who live on the street continue to maintain contact with the families in the neighborhood (many even give money they earn as street vendors), so the Center also works with some kids who already live on the street.
Because of its location in a poor favela, Center staff understand why children leave for the street: in the dangerous favelas they are often prisoners in their own houses, there is little or no privacy when ten people live in two rooms, and domestic violence and drug abuse is common. The director of the Center, Dodô de Lima, insists that the street is as much as solution to these problems as it is a problem in itself. The challenge is to find a better solution.
The Center attempts to reconceptualize who children are. Instead of victims or potential threats, it sees children (both those on the street and those who stay in the favela) as “heroes.” Not only is this definition accurate in most cases, it also does wonders in keeping children away from the street, from crime, and from juvenile labor. The center insists on respect for children, and works on outreach to local schools and social services so that they can also see kids as heroes.
Florianópolis, in spite of having one of the higher per capita incomes in Brasil, does not have an integrated system to help kids on the street, and since the new mayor began a “zero tolerance” crime policy modeled on that of New York, police brutality against street children has exploded. Again, the Center attempts to do outreach (and with some success in Monte Cristo), but the problem is too big.
Chico Mendes Center provides the following services:
- Family strengthening and support
- Sports and games for children and youth
- Library, newspapers, movies, and thus critical access to the outside world
- Basic health care and referrals to other programs
- A men’s group to encourage their participation in their families
- Group therapy through “bio-dança,” a sort of drama-movement therapy
Rua Pau Brasil, 16
CPC 22308
Bairro Monte Cristo
Florianópolis, Santa Catarina
CEP 88090-990
Contact: Donizeti José de Lima (Dodô)
