ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to discuss the strategies, articulation, and resilience built during the pandemic of the new coronavirus in the Fumacê favela community territory (“Fumacê slum”) in the city of Rio de Janeiro. We investigated the measures taken by the community to fight the virus, focusing on Rogéria, a community organiser with over 20 years of experience. This territory defines the resources available for the work of community articulation. The governmental responses are unequal, which is reflected in investment, allocation of funds, and quality of public services. During the pandemic, the community organisation in favelas, led by local groups and supporting institutions, ensured the distribution of food and personal hygiene items and the sanitation of alleys, while also educating the population about the virus. The aftermath of the pandemic in the favelas is an indication of social inequality as a structural feature of Brazilian society. The spreading of the virus and mortality rates due to Covid-19 reveal the heterogeneity of urban arrangements in the city of Rio. Access to decent housing, drinking water, and fair incomes in favelas is much lower than the standards recommended by international health agencies.
