Expointer - Esteio, Rio Grande do Sul (by Omar Junior)
Six of Brazil’s twenty-six states have flags that resemble the US flag, which was itself the basis for the original flag of Brazil after it became a republic in 1889.
The flag of São Paulo (middle bottom) was one proposal for a new Brazilian flag in 1889, abandoning the traditional green and yellow, as those were the colors of the royal family. During the 1932 civil war, the map of Brazil was replaced by a map of São Paulo state.
Carnaval in Salvador. People in the middle row paid for V.I.P. access - denoted by the obligatory wearing of a dorky T-shirt called “abada”, which costs between R$ 250 and R$ 1500 (roughly $ 100 to $ 750).
The City of Salvador has the greatest African ancestry in Brazil, with about 70% of residents self-identifying as black. The V.I.P. access is not segregated in any way, except for “Filhos de Gandhi” block, which accepts only blacks (“Filhos de Gandhi” means Sons of Gandhi - yes, the Indian guy). The locals are not willing to pay those outrageous prices for the dubious privilege of not mixing up with poor (and often colored) people.
Those douchey whitey V.I.P.s (heh) are tourists from southern Brazil and elsewhere in the world.
Note (edit): I’m in no way defending the theory that Brazil doesn’t have racism. What I’m saying is that this particular picture, impressive as it is, is showing the difference between locals and tourists. You can probably find a similar color contrast between VIP rooms against bleacher seats during a Carnaval parade in Rio or São Paulo, or during soccer games - in that case, both are composed mostly of locals. Still, I’m calling the tourists douchey for paying overpriced tickets to not mix up with people and failing to notice the role they’re playing in the above picture
Residents at Pinheirinho favela (Sao Jose dos Campos, state of Sao Paulo) prepared to resist eviction.
During this week, two judges emitted conflicting orders, the first issuing and the latter cancelling their eviction, as the favela was born from an invasion of private property.
The latest news are that the police is on site conducting the eviction at this moment. See #Pinheirinho on Twitter.
EDIT: Less stylish pictures from today’s action.
EDIT 2: The eviction order was cancelled while the police was already carrying it. The eviction was concluded and the residents are now allocated to a temporary camp made by the city authority. A fiery reaction occurred on Twitter, not only because poor people were being expelled, but also for the owner of said property being Naji Nahas, billionaire stock broker accused of serious crimes against the financial system, jailed and absolved in 2008.
