Javier Alvarez

Photographer

www.javieralvarezm.com/

BRASIL Copa do Povo

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Clients: Washington Post, Bloomberg, Alloy, Aperture Foundation, Care:Work

The 'Arena Corinthians&...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

1 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

The 'Arena Corinthians' stadium, located at the Itaquera neighborhood, seeing from the top of a hill at the MTST's shacks camp, located 3 miles away. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A group of neighbors relaxing a...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

2 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A group of neighbors relaxing after a day of labor at the MTST camp. About 5000 people settled here demanding housing rights solutions, while the country spent $3.6 billion on construction, logistics, and marketing, using public funds. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A woman passes by an improvised...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

3 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A woman passes by an improvised corridor among hundreds of shacks where families sleep on the abandoned lot with 34 acres of extension. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

Bruno, 16. Early in the morning...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

4 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

Bruno, 16. Early in the morning at the camp, people line up to receive food from a soup kitchen installed by the MTST, providing food and hot beverages to anyone who is in need. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

The hand of a woman who preferr...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

5 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

The hand of a woman who preferred not to be identified releases the steam from a pressure pot. Soup kitchens are another form of organization within the MTST organization that manages to feed their adherents with food and supplies coming from other empty lands turned into farms, taken across the country. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A group of people distributes f...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

6 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A group of people distributes food in one of the dozens of soup kitchens installed over the 37 acres of land in the suburbs of São Paulo city. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A man is sitting pensively insi...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

7 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A man is sitting pensively inside his 6x6 shack. Between 2011 and 2014, about 200.000 people reported eviction as a result of building works for the Brazilian World Cup. The official numbers provided by the government did not even reach the 40.000. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

Teenagers passing cigarettes ar...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

8 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

Teenagers passing cigarettes around, gathered at the main entrance of the camp. A proposed eviction of the 'Favela de la Paz,' located in the same area where the stadium is, was prevented by the action of these groups and negotiations with the municipality. However, more than 4000 people ended up being evicted, in another nearby area that connected the highway with the airport, bringing those groups to the campsite in Itaquera. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A man dressed up with a dress m...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

9 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A man dressed up with a dress made out of pieces of fabric, cheering up friends and comrades from the camp, as a way to spread joy and positiveness within the community. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

Marcelo, 18. Early in the morni...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

10 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

Marcelo, 18. Early in the morning at the camp, people line up to receive food from a soup kitchen installed by the MTST, providing food and hot beverages to anyone who is in need. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A teenage girl sits outside her...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

11 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A teenage girl sits outside her improvised house, on the outskirts of the camp. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

A couple walks among the street...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

12 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

A couple walks among the street that separates the camp with the formal neighborhood in Itaquera. Many of the constructions in the entire country, reproduce and reinforced the existing socio-economic and cultural structure, consolidating the privileges of the elite at the expense of everyone else. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

The MTST main shack at the camp...;atilde;o Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

13 of 13 © 2024 Javier Alvarez

The MTST main shack at the camp, where coordinators can meet, and the general public had the option to sign up for space at the Itaquera camp. Itaquera, São Paulo / Brazil. 2014.

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Public Project

BRASIL Copa do Povo

Copyright Javier Alvarez 2024

Date of Work Jun 2014 - Jun 2014

Updated Apr 2020

Location Sao Paulo

Topics Photography

The ‘People’s Cup’ camp, was a settlement of 5000 displaced Brazilians living illegally only two miles away from the 'Arena Corinthians'', a soccer stadium built to celebrate the 2014 FIFA World Cup, with a cost of production near the $300 million, financed with public funds. These families claimed that the real state speculation during the construction of the stadium created rent increases that drove them out of their homes.

Brazil's Homeless Workers Movement (MTST), was responsible for having occupied these 37 acres of abandoned land, facilitating construction materials to build shacks. Families lived under extremely precarious conditions dealing with braving insects, lack of food, cold, and diseases while the world's biggest soccer tournament was taking place only 3 miles away.

Assignment for The Clinic magazine (Chile). June 2014.

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