According to BBC News, approximately 3.5 - 7.5 million people died due to the violence every year in the world. Most of the victims are about 15~29 years olds who got serious injuries or even killed because of the violence. Rio de janeiro, the huge city and is known as the most violent place in Brazil where many children who are abducted and taking risks by working for people and to do gang such as stealing. A person who started to change her favela is Mayra. (Brazil Violence) ‘Mayra’s fight goes on, as life in the favela’s remains extremely dangerous and the local facilities are poor.’ Her success of winning against violence saved more than 1000 children’s lives in Brazil. Mayra, who is only a teenager lives in a violent environment in Brazil. When there was civil war between the drug cartel and the police, she regained control and tried to help other children in favela by stopping violence and demanded every child have rights.
Mayra’s favela was like living in a civil war between the drug cartels and the police, but Mayra didn’t want to be scared of going outside and helped put a stop to the violence. In fact, Rio is the city that is the most violent place in Brazil. Many people couldn’t live peacefully and was afraid of the gunfire happening. ‘Peace should be for everyone and we all should work for it.’ and violence affected lots of people who were innocent. ‘The violence rose to such extreme levels that, when Mayra was eleven years old, the neighbourhood was cut off and became virtually inaccessible to medical and teaching staff.’ (Children Peace Prize) Many lawless and heavily armed crime lords came to her neighborhood and had lots of violence going on between drug cartel and police. However, Mayra decided to help people who are risking their lives to be against the drug cartel and people who are injured because of the fighting. Because the war occurred so often, that people were afraid to go outside. Mayra stopped the conflict to make her favela become peaceful. Before, Mayra tried to stop the violence, it rose higher and higher that even people who are not related into this violence got hurt and even killed. Mayra made community by herself and she tries everything to have her rights. She fight for everything and declared to everyone. Fortunately, the police gave up and everyone now have their own rights. ‘She mobilized children to participate in a community march against violence.’ (Kids Rights)Mayra added a quote and tried to risk her life to stop the violence for people. ‘Do something instead of nothing.’ (Video) At the age of 15, Mayra organized the community and made every single people to participate in the community to stop the violence. Furthermore, police was patrolling around the school so Mayra tried everything to make police to stop patrolling. Her confident had succeeded to make violence shortened. Mayra tries her best to stop the violence. She even organized the whole community to stop the violence. She is really selfless and think about other peoples’ feelings and injury. To sum up, because of Mayra a teenager’s courageousness, the violence had been shortened and her town started to become peaceful.
Mayra also declared that every children has rights to education and health care, so she organised a community that allowed children to go to school. For instance, Mayra sympathizes for someone who takes risks who aren’t able to be educated or taken care of some guardians. “Everybody has a part to play in improving human rights, in particular the rights of children as the future generation. We can and must stand up for these children, whose rights are being violated and whose lives are at risk.” In fact, Mayra’s favela had violence so much that every health centers, schools closed down. As a result, children didn’t have rights to be educated or to be healthy. On the other hand, Mayra demanded to government about her own rights even other children’s. Mayra is courageous upstander who demands basic human rights likes education and security for poor children. Her pride is extremely strong and she even thinks rights are not given to certain people but given to everyone in this world. ‘I believe peace is not privilege.’ I have a dream.’ Mayra has a dream to stand for. She feels bad when she see someone who takes risks like children who are injured. She thinks peace is for everyone and children who are unable to educated, she demanded that all children should be educated. Mayra tries her effort to make every children to be educated and gave hopes to others who are in risk.
Whenever, violence happened every time in favela, Mayra stops the violence to make her town to be peaceful. Furthermore, she helps children who were forced to do something and made them have their own rights. By confidently stopping violence and risking her life, she had succeeded to stop police patrolling around the school and opened the school again which was closed due to the violence. Children now could be educated and go to school like normal kids do. Because she never gave up and tries everything she can, she won against the violence. She made her town to become peaceful and the violence in her town, so she recieved Children Peace Prize in 2008. Mayra’s determination and courageous helped children. Furthermore, Mayra is an upstander who stopped the violence and demanded children’s rights bravely.
