Long before I started this project, Witness.org became one of my favourite NGOs after I was introduced to their work by Peter Wintonick & Kat Cizek’s 2002 documentary Seeing is Believing. In fact, it was my early exposure to Witness’s unique methodology – providing human rights activists video equipment and training to document human rights abuses – that led to my own interest in participatory media.

Here is a short video I helped shoot in Rio: a portrait of Francisca, who was evicted from the community of Restinga. The video was created for Witness by my collaborator in Rio, Tiago Donato, who received the first camera I ever left there, a Sony PD100. He later hooked up with Witness and Rio’s Popular Committee to produce this and other advocacy work. Tiago is a great talent and is developing a keen eye for cinematography and hopes to become a DOP some day.

On December 17, 2010, Francisca, along with 153 other families residing in the community of Restinga (Rio de Janeiro), were surprised when city officials showed up unannounced and began demolishing homes to make way for a new BRT line to the Olympics site in the West zone of the city. Francisca raised her family in the community and operated a woodworking shop there. We caught up with Francisca 2 years later in December 2012.

From the Witness website: “Many of the families emphasize that they’re not against the construction projects in principle. Rather, they’re against against the manner in which these projects are being pushed forth by local authorities, without respect to affected communities’ rights to due process, consultation, fair compensation or adequate resettlement.”