Brazil: Tourists Complain of Violence at Rio Carnival

According to Jornal do Brasil, Carnival festivities escalated to violence and crime in downtown Rio de Janeiro this Saturday, leaving one person injured. The Cordão da Bola Preta, one of Brazil’s most historic, highly anticipated street parties, was plagued with assaults, thefts, and fights.

The Cordão da Bola Preta is a Carioca (pertaining to Rio de Janeiro) tradition spanning ninety-eight consecutive years. The celebration drew over one million people to Avenida 1a de Março, many of them children and family-members. The party was a grand spectacle this year, offering big-name acts such as funk artist Ludmilla as “Queen of the Block”. Amid the revelry, however, some partygoers found themselves victims of “miscreants” as Pedro Ernesto Marinho describes them. Marinho, president of the Cordão da Bola Preta, even made threats to cancel the event in light of the inappropriate behavior in the streets. Tourists complained of violence, and cases of stolen cell-phones were reported.

Despite the chaos, however, Carnival continued uninterrupted in Rio. Berenice Mendes affirms, “I love this with a passion. My mother would bring me when I was a child, and I liked it. Carnival is in the blood. It used to be less violent, but, taking care and staying in the corners, everything turns out fine.” Read article.