The Kid in the Street

The program has been successful in rehabilitating
30 percent of the children. The remaining 70 percent,
however, grow up to be criminals, going to jail
or ending up dead by the hands of drug dealers.

Danielle Newman
 

On a sunny day, by the traffic light near McDonald's, in a town called Campinas outside of the city of São Paulo in Brazil, a group of children hang out together having fun. They are not having fun because they are heading to McDonald's to enjoy a Happy Meal like regular children do. They are there because they are children who live on the streets and have nothing better to do, so they try to have fun together.

They spend most of their time asking people, in cars stopped at traffic lights, to help them get through the day with some spare change. These kids may not have a house, good education, or good nutrition, but surely they have creativity. One of them, a boy named Marcelo, age 13, relatively short for his age, 4'7" feet tall, sporting a big smile, makes flip-flops with cardboard and plastic straws because he doesn't have any shoes and asks, "Hey there, what do you think of my flip-flops? Aren't they nice?"

Many misfortunate children like Marcelo have been suffering from the psychological, emotional and physical impact that results from being a rejected citizen in the world. According to Unicef (United Nations Chidren's Fund) 36 percent of Brazilian children are poor. This means almost 21 million children under the age of 17 live with families considered poor, their monthly income corresponding to half of the minimum wage, which is R$ 100 (one hundred reals, or approximately forty dollars). Furthermore, in 1999 at least 450 thousand children between ages 10 and 17 were not studying, working or helping in any way at home. Since it's difficult to find specific data on street kids, this number could represent roughly the number of kids who live on the streets of Brazil.

Marcelo has lived on the streets for three months. Previously, he was in a rehab house. "I stayed five days in the rehab and it was good. I left because bigger kids were beating me up," he says.

He can't go back to school because some people in his neighborhood are blaming him for something he claims he didn't do. If he goes back, he says, "They will kill me."

Marcelo doesn't like his life. "I can't really sleep well on the street. You close your eyes and you never know if someone will come to light a match and set you on fire while you are sleeping. Sometimes I don't sleep at night, I prefer to sleep during the day when everybody is watching out."

Marcelo continued to explain that he dropped out from school in 1^st grade and that his mother doesn't want this kind of life for him because she also went through this. Marcelo's dream is to study again and get a job.

Brazil has been experiencing positive transformations since 1990, when the political scenario changed from a repressive military dictatorship to a democratic nation, after 27 years of military power. Consequently, economic changes came along; the opening of the market in 1990 brought businesses to the country, which generated more jobs. In 1994 the current president, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, implemented an economic package called the Real Plan with the purpose of controlling exorbitant inflation rates—in 1993 it reached 2700 percent—and raising economic standards of the poor.

Despite Brazil's economic and political progress since 1990, the country continues to carry a huge social debt from the past. This social debt has existed since the 19^th century and is still visible on the streets today, reflecting directly on kids who live in such conditions.

Old Problem

According to Gilberto Dimenstein, author of O Cidadão de Papel (The Citizen of Paper, published by Editora Ártica), the root of the problem has its origins in slavery. Brazil was the last independent nation in the world to abolish slavery in 1888. Because of preconceptions against blacks at that time, opportunities for children of slaves were very limited. It was very difficult for them to gain access to basic education and jobs, therefore, the children started hanging out on the streets.

The other part of the problem is a history of uneven distribution of income within the Brazilian society since the imperial period, in the early 17^th century. For instance, more recently in 1995, 10 percent of the population in Brazil held 48 percent of the wealth, whereas in the U.S. 10 percent of the population held 23.3 percent of the wealth.

Marcelo's friends Wesley, 14, and Leandro, 17, have their own disheartening stories as well. Their stories differ from one another; they are unique, yet they all have a common starting point, disagreement in the family.

"I don't go back home because my father drinks [alcohol] and beats me up every day. If I try to go back it doesn't work because he keeps beating me up," says Wesley whose deep green eyes contrast with his slightly dark skin.

Wesley feels safe on the streets because nobody beats him up. He would like to go back to school again but the barriers are several: no home, no books, and no clean clothes. He washes himself in a nearby fountain.

Wesley would change everything in his life if he could. Among all his friends, he was the one who so desperately needed a chance, and certainly would make good use of it. He speaks clearly and determined, choking back tears from time to time.

Leandro is a very smart and sensitive teenager. Signs of puberty are stamped on his face. He is a young man who seems to be questioning his current situation. Leandro has lived on the streets for three years. He left home because there is too much fighting there. His stepfather is not the typical case of alcohol abuse, but this makes matters even worse for Leandro.

"Because my stepfather doesn't drink he shouldn't mistreat me. But since I'm not his son he was always beating me up. My mother said that if I wanted to stay home it would have to be his way. Then I left," he says. "I'm nothing, actually I'm a vermin because I am here at the traffic light begging. The police officers come by and tell me I'm garbage," a disturbing testimony from Leandro. Leandro's only wish is to return to his mother and siblings.

Is there any solution?

"It's not good for you to stay here near the traffic light," says police officer Nelson, 38. He explains that when kids hang out near the traffic light, they cause fear of assault on people driving by. "The city offers some solutions but very often they are not interested. They can receive seven days of rehab and informal education but they prefer the streets because food and money come easily. In addition, on the streets they have easy access to their addiction to drugs like glue sniffing and crack. So it's difficult to combat the problem," says officer Nelson.

The officer deals with this problem daily and he thinks the solution should come from local authorities. He admits that the available rehab programs are not strict enough, which makes it easy for them to escape or find bad influences. "If they could get a strict education while in rehab, the program could work just fine," he says.

Civil rights in Brazil are usually respected, nevertheless, the most devastating incident involving street kids and police in Brazil occurred in 1993, when eight boys were killed by three military police officers and one civil officer, while they slept on the door steps of the Candelária church, in Rio de Janeiro.

Fazenda do Padre Haroldo is an institution located in Campinas that has been providing an example of how seriously each and every troubled child should be treated. The institution is a complex of houses and farms founded by an American priest from Texas. His name is Harold Rahm, 83, well known as "Padre Haroldo", or Father Harold. Padre Haroldo came to Campinas in 1964, and has been integrating solutions for the misfortunate in the region ever since.

Maria Angélica Leal Sandoval, 69, director of the Padre Haroldo Program, which has been in place since 1989, sees the problem of homeless children being directly related to two main factors: poverty and drugs. "I think that in a certain way the number of children living on the streets is going up. This is due to the growing number of children using drugs. Although not every one of them uses drugs, most often than not they do," says Mrs. Sandoval.

She also states that the problem begins within dysfunctional families, with parents that use drugs and alcohol, parents who are drug dealers, and the lack of support from the society in general. Their program works closely with boys between the ages of 12 and 17. (As of today, they do not have enough funds to work with street girls). The program is segmented in three phases.

"Educators go to the streets to convince the children to accept treatment and take them to the program. We call this phase the "educational flirt," says Mrs. Sandoval. The other way kids end up there is through a judicial order from the court or through the institution that protects the rights of children and adolescents.

They propose that the kids remain in the second phase for six months, which consists of drug detoxification. The third phase is called "social reintegration." It's when they prepare the child or teenager to go back into the society by directing them to formal or professional schools, where they learn skills in computing, arts, and electronics. This phase can take up to three months. The institution receives financial support from private companies, City Hall, and charitable donations, in addition to offering courses and speeches to the population in general in order to raise funds.

The program has been successful in rehabilitating 30 percent of the children who go through the treatment. Unfortunately, the remaining 70 percent grow up to be criminals, living their lives in jail or ending up dead by the hands of drug dealers.

Children as Investment

Waldir Passarella, 54, an entrepreneur who lives in Brazil, expresses his opinion about the problem: "The children represent the mirror of our society. The same finance principle of 'return on investment' could be applied to this case."

He explains that if a society treats its children with respect and invests in them, offering a decent life, education and preparing them for the job market, the return will be a positive one to the nation. On the other hand, if the society "throws" its children on the streets, the country will miss many good chances to grow economically and thrive as a successful nation, because the people who should be developing good ideas and producing wealth are instead dealing with drugs and committing crimes.

Mr. Passarella thinks that until authorities recognize street kids as the worst of all problems, the population itself will have to deal with a dysfunctional and hypocritical society, besides having to face growing violence that originates from kids who become criminals.

He heard about the Padre Haroldo Program and says, "There are several institutions like Father Harold's Program out there trying to "fix" the problem on their own after the children leave their homes, however, prevention of this problem should be a priority in politicians' agendas."

How should prevention occur? According to Mr. Passarella, "If the problem of street kids is directly related to poverty, lack of education and drugs, then the government's job should be to ensure that the standard of living in Brazil continues to improve through a better distribution of income. Moreover, it is crucial to establish a solid and consistent educational system. Lastly, extermination of drug operations is a global issue that needs to be worked out among all the countries in the world."

Someday in the future whenever this problem is solved, the street kid will be seen in the same way we now see slavery; as something that shamed us all, something that should have never happened.

Danielle Newman is a Paulista (native of São Paulo) and has been living in the U.S. for five years. She earned a Bachelor's degree in advertising in Brazil in 1995, a Master's degree in international marketing at Saint Joseph's University, in Philadelphia in 2000, and is currently working on a certificate program in journalism, at New York University. She has had an international corporate experience working for Xerox in Brazil and she currently works for The Gallup Organization in New York, as an assistant to a best-selling writer. Danielle Newman lives with her husband, Bryan, in New York City. She can be contacted at dani43@hotmail.com

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