Abstract
This paper analyzes the unequal nature of urban development projects associated with international megaevents in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, through the lenses of race and social class. By doing this, I seek to demonstrate how spatial struggles associated with such urban development projects are part of a longstanding pattern of socio-cultural conflict between the Brazilian elite and the urban poor. This paper specifically examines the spatial struggles embodied by the destruction of Morro do Castelo during the early 1920s, and the removal of favelas, including Vila Autódromo, between 2009 and 2016. This research is based on information from primary documents such as news coverage of resistance to development projects leading up to the 2016 Olympics, and planning documents including Rio de Janeiro’s Olympic bid and the Games’ transportation development plan. In addition to these sources, I have also drawn on the scholarship of Lorraine Leu, Theresa Williamson, and Christopher Gaffney.
Recommended Citation
Morales, Jorge A.
(2025)
"Here We Rio Again: The 2016 Olympic Games and the Reproduction of Spatial Struggles by Mega-events in Rio de Janeiro,"
Chronos: Vol. 16, Article 7.
Available at:
https://surface.syr.edu/chronos/vol16/iss1/7