Soccer Brings Military Police And Favela Residents Together
Anselmo da Silva Nascimento, 27, security worker. Resident of Caju.
“I’m sure my life would be a lot different without soccer. There’s no doubt. Soccer opens up our minds to many things; we are not limited in what we can do and it prevents us from going down the wrong path. I was born and raised in the Caju community. Many of my friends, who grew up playing soccer with me gave it up, and ran into bad situations. Some of them were arrested, others died, others got involved in drug trafficking and lived broken lives. It could have been different with soccer in their lives.<br><br>It’s exciting when soccer is involved. People cry when they win. They cry when they lose.<br><br>Caju is a good and cheerful community, full of kids who have the talent but lack access to the resources to develop their skills. This region is lacking in investment. It’s a community like any other, full of people who pursue their dreams and fight to achieve something in life, like any other middle or upper class citizen.<br><br>Regardless of race, color or where you live, no one can judge you. People from Caju are like any other kind of people. They are educated: There are lawyers, engineers and even PhDs living there.”
Mauro Pimentel/HuffPost Brazil
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