Lights, camera, rehab

The way the journalism portrays the youth in conflict with the law has long been discussed but little is known about the media image these young people would build for themselves. Journalism students at the Catholic University of Paraná (PUC- PR) developed a project that depicts and documents the everyday life of a socio-educational center in Fazenda Rio Grande, in greater Curitiba.

Élida Oliveira, Rafael Bonfim and Luiz Ronaldo Vaca , are authors of  the project “Between Light and Shadow- adolescent self-portraits: the universe of the young offenders in text and image,” which discusses the role of journalism. “We concluded that the media should portray society as it is and stop omitting topics such as detention centers,” says Élida.

The program was set in a socio-educational center in response to the need for pedagogical projects at detainment centers for young offenders and the fact the Fazenda Rio Grande unit would be open to implementating them with a methodology focused on the youth rehabilitation.

For  Lilian Lina Drews, responsible for the Fazenda Rio Grande Socio-educational Center, the specialized  work with adolescents is in accordance with the Special Assistance Program (Programa Personalizado de Atendimento-PPA), one of the guidelines of the “Sistema Nacional de Atendimento Socioeducativo (Sinase) launched last July by the federal Special Human Rights Office. “Each person has a life history within a specific social environment. The fact the adolescent is part of a socio-educational community doesn’t mean he loses his identity, " says Lilian.

The Fazenda Rio Grande Center currently has 35 male inmates, mostly first-time offenders. “Although the imprisonment implies more serious offenses, these boys don’t have a history of delinquency and in a small unit youths respond faster to socio-educational programs,” says Lilian.

In addition to rehabilitation programs such as formal education courses, medical, dental and social assistance and Word-Workshops (in which youths are encouraged to express their hopes, complaints and demands), Lilian highlights “special programs” such as “Between Light and Shadow” that help inmates take charge of their lives and recover their self-esteem.

Similarities are not mere coincidences

According to Élida, the decision to embark of a project for young inmates was based on a tragic story. After a rebellion in Sao Francisco Socio-education Center, in Piraquara in which one inmate was murdered, three students asked themselves what leads a young person to comit such a crime. “When we started working with the inmates at the Fazenda Rio Grande, we discovered that they were ordinary adolescents as we once were. They worry about girlfriends, professions, education as we also did,” she recalls.

The media image of the young criminal was the starting point for using photography and cinema as working tools.” We realized that the media almost always portrays young offenders as mask-wearing toughs and examining these images allows the youth to tell his story,” says Élida.

From January 31 to March 31 2007, three journalism students held workshops for six inmates at the Fazenda Rio Grande Socio-educational Center that resulted in a documentation that is currently in post production. Photography workshops had 90% approval rating and the youth made good use of framing techniques that show respect for their right to keep their identities private, in accordance with the Statute of the Child and Adolescence. For the documentary, the students helped the inmates create sophisticated questions. “The feeling was that they didn’t see themselves as just another item to be checked off a list, and it opened us a path to work with them,” says Élida.

Participants not only chose this project and others with limited vacancies but were also chosen for them. Lilian tels us that in the Word-Workshops the youths say which projects they want implemented and participate according to their stage of rehabilitation. “As the youth follows the center's core routine, he understands his right to privacy, dignity and respect,” says Lilian. “The special programs belong to a community network that helps adolescents feel part of the community,” said Lilian.

This project was selected by the “Programa de Cooperação para a Qualificação de Estudantes de Jornalismo ( InFormacao ), promoted by  the “Agencia de Noticias dos Direitos da Infância” (Andi) and by  W.K. Kellogg Foundation that offers scholarships for final course projects focusing on social themes.

Pictures taken by inmates at the Fazenda Rio Grande Socio-educational Center photography workshops.