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Brazil's Street Children: History, Causes, and Survival

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Abstract

This paper examines the phenomenon of street children in Brazil from a historical and causative perspective. Beginning with the relatively tolerant social attitudes of the pre-dictatorship era, it traces how government policies between 1964 and 1984 criminalized children who did not conform to conservative family ideals, culminating in state-sanctioned death squad violence that claimed thousands of young lives into the 1990s. The paper also analyzes the root causes behind children's presence on the streets — including extreme poverty, single-parent households, neglect, and abuse — and explores the distinct experiences of boys and girls navigating street life in urban Brazil.

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What makes this paper effective

It grounds its argument in concrete historical chronology, moving logically from colonial attitudes through dictatorship policy to post-democratic violence, giving the reader a clear causal narrative.
It uses specific statistics (e.g., 4,611 murders, the $50 bounty, the Candelária massacre) to substantiate claims, lending credibility and emotional weight to the analysis.
It distinguishes between different categories of street children — those still connected to families and those fully living on the streets — demonstrating analytical nuance rather than treating the subject as monolithic.

Key academic technique demonstrated

The paper effectively employs historical contextualization as an analytical framework. Rather than simply describing a social problem, it traces the ideological and political mechanisms — such as the doutrina de situacao irregular — that transformed societal attitudes toward vulnerable children. This technique shows how policy and cultural norms actively produce social outcomes, a hallmark of sociological and historical analysis.

Structure breakdown

The paper opens by establishing the long-standing presence of street children in Brazil, then moves chronologically through historical periods: colonial-era tolerance, dictatorship-era criminalization, and post-dictatorship violence. The final sections shift from historical narrative to causal analysis, examining poverty, family structure, and gender as explanatory factors. This structure transitions smoothly from "what happened" to "why it happens," providing both descriptive and analytical value.

Introduction: Street Children in Brazil's Urban Landscape

The presence of children working and living in the streets of Brazil's cities and towns is nothing new. In the 1960s, these moleques — a term roughly translating to scamps or rascals — were known for their ability to survive on the street using their own wits (Scheper-Hughes and Hoffman, 1994). They would try to find work when they could, beg in the streets when they couldn't, or occasionally sell themselves for sex. In essence, Brazilian society seemed to tolerate their presence, if not occasionally exploit it.

Historical Roots: From Slavery to Tolerance

Tolerance, and even compassion, for the plight of vulnerable segments of Brazilian society date back to the period of slavery that ended in the latter part of the 19th century (Filho and Neder, 2001). The Church was tasked with taking in the infirm, the elderly, and the young, since plantations had little room for persons who could not contribute to the workforce. This institutionalized form of care shaped early attitudes toward social dependents, including children without stable homes.

Dictatorship and the Criminalization of Street Children

This attitude of tolerance changed dramatically between 1964 and 1984, when military dictatorships enacted policies — both official and unofficial — that were repressive and discriminatory against the mostly Afro-Brazilian population (Filho and Neder, 2001). The doutrina de situação irregular, or the doctrine of anomalous situations, essentially declared all persons who did not fit within the conservative ideal of a nuclear family to be engaging in anti-social behavior. This ideological framework effectively criminalized poverty and marginalized children who lacked conventional family structures.

3 Locked Sections · 450 words remaining

State Violence Against Street Children · 130 words

"Death squads murdering thousands of street children"

Why Children End Up on the Streets · 145 words

"Poverty, single mothers, neglect, and abuse as causes"

Gender Dynamics and Survival on the Streets · 175 words

"Boys and girls face distinct dangers on the streets"

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Key Concepts in This Paper

Street Children State Violence Urban Poverty Death Squads Child Exploitation Dictatorship Policy Gender Disparity Family Breakdown Candelária Massacre Social Marginalization