HIGHWAY TO POA
Grassroots movement takes back public spaces from the fear of crime bringing families and friends to parks, eating gourmet snacks made by local chefs and donating clothes to charity.
Alex Somervell
Porto Alegre, June 22nd, 2014.
Lack of safety at night is an epidemic that not only affects the city of Porto Alegre but the whole of Brazil. Although it is actually considered a relatively safe city, at least when compared to the rest of the country, there were 57 thousand registered robberies that took place in Porto Alegre alone during 2012 (1). To put that into context that is over 150 robberies per day for a city of 1.5 million people, New York city has 102 robberies per day but its population is 8.3 million people (2). Parks themselves are the most dangerous areas where miles of pitch black represent nothing more than a hunting ground for thieves at night.
On the 21st of June however, the first day of winter and under 10°C , two thousand five hundred people ‘occupied’ the Moinhos de Vento Park at midnight in an effort to take back freedom, safety and public spaces for the citizens of Porto Alegre.
What makes the movement unique is that besides creating a safe environment for all, in an otherwise dangerous place, it does so while providing a selection of gourmet snacks prepared by local chefs. On Saturday there were 20 of them, selling everything from wraps made out of pastrami, roasted tomatoes, arugula herbs and mustard sauce, to barbecued fruit crumble. All snacks at the relatively modest price of 10 reais (around 5 dollars). In this way the chefs give something back to the community but also to raise awareness of their products.
The idea behind all this is to “have fun in public spaces that have been forgotten, and are empty at night because of the lack of safety besides meeting people and eating good food”. The organiser, Sigrid Dierecks commented.
They have certainly achieved their goal and more. The more being that at the latest edition they managed to raise no less than 2.5 tonnes of clothes for the Projeto Vó Chica, aimed at helping the people underprivileged areas of the city, by asking everyone to bring clothes to donate.
Porto Alegre’s response to unsafety at night? Midnight picnic in the park.
