The well-known Favelas of Rio de Janeiro first appeared in the late 19th Century, but were brought into the spotlight worldwide with Meirelles 2002 film 'City of God'. The hard ship of living in a favela run by drug lords was sensationalized by the film, but then mostly forgotten in more recent years. The 2016 Olympic Games brought Rio back into the spotlight, and with that it would seem from their actions that the authorities perceived the favela population as compromising to the cities reputation.

Although the 'City of God' brought the reality of Rio's favelas to screens around the world, it had little impact on life within them, other than attracting more tourists. Even the actors in the film received little payment, and few had improved prospects following it. In the 18 years since the film was released there have been attempts to improve the favelas. The change of government in Brazil from a military dictatorship led to an image change

and mixed use developments, as they are both the homes and social centres for their communities. Furthermore, as favelas traditionally had little input from the authorities they created their own form of governance, with residents associations. These associations came together to provide their communities with health care, sanitation and transportation within the favelas.

Drugs continue to rule, and the police war against drugs means there is violence every day in these dwellings. The Pacifying Police Units program, which began in 2008, was largely unfruitful due to the resourcefulness of drugs traffickers in the favelas. Prime Minister Jair Bosonaro has assumed a policy of eradicating the drugs gangs in Brazil's favelas, meaning there is increased fighting within them from day to day.

Some areas of favelas have been described as a warzone, with 5-6 people killed every day as a result of the violence. The gangs are not going to be easy to 'eradicate', as their weaponry and structure led has reporters who have been among them to describe them as being more militias than gangs.
Vinicius Santiago argues in his paper 'From the Backstage of War: the struggle of Mothers in Favelas of Rio de Janeiro', that the 'war against drugs' has impacted all aspects of life in favelas. The violence is not contained within the realms of the drug traffickers and police, all members of the community are effected, in Santiago's words 'armed violence has penetrated the everyday lives of city residents to the point where they live in a state of constant fear and tension.' Whether that be that their sons are killed, their commutes disrupted by gun fire, or children put in danger at school, the tight knit communities are all in danger as the war against drugs continues.
Although now around 99% of people living in favelas have electricity and running water, living standards are far from the bright lights of Rio de Janeiro. In Brazil the richest 10% of the population account for 43.1% of national income. Despite having the largest economy in South America it is still regarded as a developing country due to the low GDP per capita, living standards and high infant mortality rate. Much of this is due to the poverty that remains in favelas.

Groups like ‘The Favela Foundation’ and ‘Project Favela’ are NGOs that are helping to improve the prospects of favela life by providing education to its children, mostly with help from international volunteers. Education will provide the next generation with skills needed to emerge from favela life, or develop and improve it. Life inside favelas are filled with fear as the fighting continues. Community groups and schools work hard to keep people safe amid the violence, if we can support them we will be closer to bringing the level of safety and security that will allow communities to develop, grow and thrive.
I am writing amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and as it has highlighted inequalities across the world, the favelas of Rio are no different. Drug traffickers have been policing Favelas after they felt that Coronavirus was not being taken seriously by the authorities. Bolsonaro continues to believe the virus is of little threat. The drug traffickers have been handing out soap, putting up signs asking people to wash their hands, and have given some favelas a curfew of 8:30pm. Despite this effort, for some the level of cleanliness needed to keep the virus at bay will be impossible, with houses at the top of the favelas going without water for a number of weeks.