Rio's 'War on Drugs' Claims 24 Lives, Targets Poor
Mainstream media, like The Guardian, reports on another bloody 'drug bust' in Rio's favelas, claiming 24 lives in a single operation. The narrative centers on 'Red Command traffickers' and novel threats like 'weaponized drones.' What they don't explicitly state, but everyone knows, is that these 'wars' are overwhelmingly fought in the poorest Black and Brown communities, effectively criminalizing
poverty and a lack of state services. This isn't a war on drugs; it's a perpetual internal occupation. These raids have been a consistent feature of Brazilian state policy for decades, often escalating during major events like the 2016 Olympics, consistently resulting in disproportionate civilian casualties and little change to the overall drug trade. The media's portrayal of 'gunfights' between
'troops' and 'traffickers' conveniently sidesteps the systemic issues that fuel these conflicts, choosing instead to focus on a familiar 'good guys vs. bad guys' script, where the bad guys are always those in the marginalized communities. One might wonder, how many more 'wars on drugs' will it take before we question who truly profits from this endless conflict?