Citation

de Lima BE, Andrade MS, Vancini RL, de Lira CAB. J. Adolesc. Health 2024; 75(1): e203.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.jadohealth.2024.03.012

PMID

38880559

Abstract

Violence in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is a problem that affects thousands of people and generates negative impacts on the lives of the population, especially secondary and elementary students [1]. On October 23, 2023, after the killing of a militia member by the police, criminals burned around 35 public transport buses as a form of protest. As a result, more than 30 public schools were closed, and those that opened had low attendance, affecting thousands of students [2]. In the month of October 2023, actions by Rio de Janeiro's police forces to combat rival criminal factions that were disputing territory for drug trafficking resulted in the closure of 70 schools, affecting more than 23,000 students [3]. In the first half of 2023, the number of municipal school closures due to violence was higher than in 2022; more than 160,000 students were affected in this period [4]. In 2022 and 2023, about 405 and 500 schools had at least 1 school day lost, respectively. These are worrying data. Certainly, the impact of this violence on young people's education is great, given that daily episodes of urban violence even of lesser magnitude are associated with important negative impacts on students, such as lower school performance, fewer years of schooling, and a lower probability of completing mandatory education [1]. Additionally, the possibility that an episode of violence could harm, disturb, and disrupt students is real and increases the state of tension and anxiety, conditions that are known to impair learning and academic performance.
The situation for Brazil's secondary and elementary students is even more worrying, given that the city of Rio de Janeiro is by far the most violent region in the country. The state of Amapá had the country's highest rate of intentional violent deaths at 50.6 per 100,000 inhabitants, while the national average is 23.3 [5]. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, many countries experiencing war and conflict have lower intentional violent death rates than Brazil [6]. ...

Language: en

Keywords

Humans; Adolescent; Brazil; *Urban Population; *Violence/prevention & control