ABSTRACT
This chapter details the emergence of a new phenomenon in the Brazilian tourism landscape, that of slum or favela tourism, with a particular focus on the city of Rio de Janeiro, host of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics. Poverty tourism was also condemned by critics and academics as a transnational desire for the consumption of Third World poverty, a commodification of power inequality and of human misery. For anthropologist Bianca Freire-Medeiros, the perception of danger remains one of the favela's most seductive aspects, attractive not only for its adrenaline rush appeal but also for its capacity to enhance the symbolic capital that can be gained from a visit. Community-led tourism gives residents the chance to speak' for themselves and to control the way they are represented. State investment in tourism can take the form of individual infrastructure projects, such as cable cars, elevators, and funiculars linking hillside favelas to public transportation networks.
