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Pele cried
Published on June 14, 2004 By weree In Politics
It was my 5th day yesterday here in Rio de Janeiro. Yesterday, for the first time in history and in Latin America the Olympic torch would be carried through the city from the Maracanã stadion to the Flamengo beach. Helis were sticking in the air like frozen mosquitos, it was only 19 degrees or even colder. People were wearing gloves and hats and sweaters for the cold. Surreal to me but real for the cariocas.
I wondered, just for a minut how much it costed to keep those metal flies up in the air for the whole event, and how much of taxmoney was being used for the prestige of this event. I grant the athletes all recognition. Ronaldo coming from Germany, now loaded with money and fame. Pele cried his eyes out when running with the torch, maybe thinking of how far his poverty he knew as a coluoured boy in Brazil and how lucky he had been to escape it through sports, maybe. I thought of the children of the nights before who came and talked to me, I let them draw with my Belgian pencil and they were happy like never before. He was only 8 and had 1 more brother and 6 sisters, all working hard all day to sell goiabada -some fruitpudding- and he and his sisters were not allowed to use the money ther earned to buy some meal. Year in year out they had done this and continue to do this at the present day on hungry stomachs. My heart kinda singed when I heard this. But they kept smiling and playing as if it were normal.
Another poor kid comes to my hotel to get milk and biscuits 3 times a day from the owner. Father in jail, and the boy´s friend proudly said one day to the owner: I am a ´bandido´ really!´ One day he will be, because there is no escape from poverty, here . The boys run errands for drugbarons, some here carry a 38 and they are only 9 years old! Would they love to see Harry Potters.
new adventures!!! The choice for me wasn´t difficult: go to the movies or pay supper for that vendor kid. What would you have done?

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