Dear Students,

Violence has been everywhere, but it seems that it will never reach us. We've been facing a very delicate moment in São Paulo and other states in Brazil which is very close to us.

Read this New York Times article ,"5 Days of Violence by Gangs in São Paulo Leaves 115 Dead Before Subsiding", Click on "Comments" below, and give your opinion on the issue.

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• What happened in São Paulo?
• Do you think there was any kind of deal to cease violence there?
• What would be effective measures to minimize the problem?

I hope to read your thoughts on this topic, which is part of our reality and an important social and political issue in Brazil.

Check what Bee Dieu, a teacher in São Paulo, wrote about the situation in São Paulo:

"Sao Paulo city (and state) have been suffering a series of synchronized and coordinated attacks since Friday evening.Toll - 81 deaths in 3 days - half policemen, half gangsters and about 4 civilians who got caught in the middle. Mutinies are happening in manyof the main state prisons. About 60 buses were burnt early this morning and 10 bank agencies were bombed or shot at."

And then in another email:

"The violence that erupted was a confrontation between one of the main gangs in SPaulo and the police. There were 251 attacks in all, mutinies in prisons all over the state and about 132 people died (mostly policemen and gangsters).Fortunately, the city is slowly going back to normal and nothing else has happened since last night. Our school was not affected and our students are safe.Although our country is beautiful, blessed for all its natural resources, warm and friendly people, the immense social disparities, corruption and weakened educational system make it a fertile soil for this parallel world to emerge and threaten to control. We will not let them and many of us are working hard to bridge the existing gaps!"

Some of Barbara Dieu's students wrote about the problem in São Paulo. Interact with them!

http://nathalia.eslblogs.org/

http://lucasf.eslblogs.org/

http://loli.eslblogs.org/

http://julie.eslblogs.org/

http://felipema.eslblogs.org/

http://derhen.eslblogs.org/

http://laurag.eslblogs.org/

http://laura.eslblogs.org/

http://alice.eslblogs.org/

Hope to hear from you.

Carla