ALWAYS PRESENT IN THE PATH
This is the column Who Makes Redes, a compilation of the stories of people who build our organization and who work hard every day to do what we do best: actions and projects for residents of Maré. Learn about these stories, trajectories, experiences and the history of Redes da Maré itself - and how this work and the challenges faced since the pandemic have transformed them.
Liliane Santos (32) was born in Maré (Baixa do Sapateiro) and she starts the conversation of this ‘Who makes Redes’ talking about the importance of the territory in the formation of her identity. The social worker operated in other favelas such as Acari and Vila Cruzeiro, but returned to Maré in 2018 to develop the work with the Right to Public Security and Access to Justice Axis. Liliane is one of the employees of Redes da Maré who followed a good part of the process of building and developing our struggles: she worked and was part of several projects and also recognizes the importance of Redes da Maré in her trajectory.
Liliane was a young apprentice, technician in the monitoring and evaluation team, interviewer of the business census, field supervisor, typist, data extraction and analysis technician, intern, social worker and is currently coordinator of the Maré of Rights project, that seeks to interfere in the social practices that hinder the access to justice of the residents of Maré. As a student, she participated in the workshops for the Petrobras Children Program, did preparatory course for technical schools and was a pre-college student. "Redes have always been present in my life trajectory", she highlighted.
Her professional choice was also linked to the work of Redes da Maré. As a student, the family was accompanied by social workers who helped in a scenario that weakens many family structures in slums and peripheries: alcoholism. She remembers the process of strengthening the mother's autonomy, helped by the professionals. “I also wanted to make a difference in people's lives. Sometimes the person who arrives for care does not need much, needs a word, needs to be heard and that´s my inspiration for the profession.”
"I believe in the institutional power of Redes, I experienced many remarkable things in this organization, but nothing compares to the experience of the ‘Maré says NO to Coronavirus’ campaign." For Liliane, this campaign came to show how much the work of Redes da Maré and the ability to reinvent during the challenges can surprise us. "It was amazing how quickly the teams got organized and managed to build methods of serving the residents that didn't even exist. This experience was surprising." In the campaign, she worked on the production of the delivery’s lists, organizing teams and serving residents. “Being in person at the front always made me think that we had no choice, because several families depended on what we were doing at that time, there we had the dimension of how necessary this work was”.
For a post-pandemic moment, the social worker expects us to not forget how much we have lost, and how much we have learned. “Washing hands has never been more important, thinking about hygiene, thinking about unemployment, hunger and everything that became more complex during the pandemic” and concludes: “not forgetting will prepare us for other challenges, but above all not forgetting will always show Redes da Maré how fundamental and necessary it is to reinvent itself in the face of the challenges that arise from now on."
