Ceilândia: name derived from the “Campanha de Eradicação das Invasões” or simply “CEI”. Founded on March 27, 1971, the administrative region completes 52 years. With its Water Tank as a symbol, the most populous city in the Federal District influences with its culture, commerce and growth.
Seen by many with disregard and as a place of little security, mainly due to the influence of media coverage, its residents emphasize its beauty and importance and celebrate its 52 years with the desire for recognition and greater visibility.
For district deputy Max Maciel, these 52 years represent more than half a century of resistance.
“These 52 years represent more than half a century of resistance. From the Campaign to Eradicate Invasions (CEI) to the Tireless Residents of Ceilândia, we have left a legacy of struggle and resilience. From forró to hip hop and from Casa do Cantador to Feira Central of Ceilândia, we also carry culture in our DNA. We have many problems, after all, the logic of the Federal District is the exclusion of the periphery from city planning and budget decisions. But the appreciation of our city exists, whether on the straight-brimmed cap written Ceilândia or in the pride of a citizen when he says he lives here. After all, we are also resilient and show, based on culture, identity and belonging, that the hood is also powerful and full of opportunities”, he said.
Maria Madalena Tôrres, a member of the Popular Movement for a Better Ceilândia (Mopocem), recalled the struggle of workers at the beginning of the founding of the city.
“I think that in these 52 years of existence of Ceilândia, the great significance was the realization of the dream of own housing, but not in a fair way. The workers who built Brasília could not stay close to the rich and in a hygiene policy they were “removed”. moving to Ceilândia had to face a lot of cold at night, sun and dust during the day. Those who could pay for a transport truck to move, got a lot in the blocks more in the center, those who couldn’t had to wait for social service cars. I heard too much these testimonials from adult and elderly literacy teachers and learners. People came with the dream of having their own house, of leaving IAPI life, but many dreamed of staying close to the Plano Piloto, but in the “hygiene policy” they wanted to clean the poor from the area of the rich, the workers served to build the capital, but not to live in it”, he said.
Also talking about the history of the city, Antônio de Paduá, coordinator of Jovem de Expressão, said that the fight is still going on.
“52 of resistance, of struggle, fighting to be recognized, where the first people who passed through here spent ten years without running water, without electricity, transported from the outskirts of Brasília, because they didn’t want our parents, in this case, over there, who came to build the city. And after all the minimal structure that we managed to be recognized as an administrative region. The 52 years represent a history of struggle that still continues, the legacy that we carry is of a people that was not part of of JK’s dreams,” he said.
And the future?
As a wish for the future, congressman Max Maciel emphasizes the appreciation of the periphery in the Federal District.
“May Ceilândia be more valued and placed, in fact, at the center of decisions, budgets and city planning. May we pay more attention not only to Ceilândia, but to all the peripheries of the Federal District. May we, increasingly more, be proud of where we come from and fight for our cities to have more cultural, leisure, health and education facilities”, he said.
“I think that Ceilândia, in order to solve its problems, needs to organize itself more in social movements and even create others, so that many people can belong to this history of struggle. See that in culture, we don’t have cinema, apart from the Sesc theater, which is private, we don’t have a theater, we fought for the construction of the second hospital, they built a “shed” and they call it “Hospital do Sol”, the cultural center is a struggle of almost 50 years to finish the necessary works. it is inconclusive. Anyway, in the view of the people who feel the difficulties in their skin every day, it is very different”, said Maria Madalena.
“The Ceilândia that I want for the future is for us to have one of the greatest cultural centers in the DF, we deserve our CCBB, our Itaú Cultural. Why is it only in Plano? Why is CCBB so far away? Because Teatro Nacional is in Plano Piloto despite being closed? Because that’s the only public cinema there, Cine Brasília? So we want it and we need it, and we’re going to get it. This is an expectation, but it’s also a struggle and I see a future where Ceilândia goes reverse the flow of economic and cultural activities in the DF”, concluded Antônio de Paduá.
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Source: BdF Distrito Federal
Editing: Flavia Quirino
