Out of what would you build your house? Plywood, plastic, or used metal?

Shantytown of Damunager, India- One of the largest shantytowns in all of Asia and it continues to grow. Shantytowns are well known for not having electricity, proper sanitation, and no communication lines for telephones.   Often such cities are a result of a developing country that has an unequal distribution of wealth leading to many people with hardly any money to live.  Sadly to say, over one-sixth of the world’s population lives in such conditions. 

In Dumunager, the shantytown located around the great city of Mumbai, officials have recognized this tragic problem and have tried to create a new program to help remove people from the Shantytown sector and also have tried to make sanitation more possible—at least publicly (Chinai).  Unfortunately, the actions of government have made the decision to start to destroy some of the shantytowns because they continue to move into the countryside of India.  As a result, many of people living in these towns have made their conditions even worse (The South Asian).

Works Cited

Chinai, Rupa. “Mumbai slum dwellers’ sewage project goes nationwide.” Bulletin of the World Health Organization. 2002.  Print. 18 Mar 2010.

Salgado, Sebastião. Photograph. Migrations: Humanity in Transition. New York: Aperture, 2000. 427. Print. 4 Mar. 2010.

“Shanty Towns.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 2009. Web. 18 Mar 2010.

“The Growing Slums of Mumbai.” The South Asian. 15 Feb 2010. Web. 18 Mar 2010.

Moms and Bombs

Mozambique-A place once filled with destruction and war has left many incapacitated or killed from the mines, bombings, and slaughters.   Many of these have lost limbs, family, and their homes.  Despite all of these terrible problems, disease spread killing many parents of children and left many as orphans.  As such, many women take on the responsibility to care for those without any parents left.  And yet despite all the tragedies, some can even smile at the life they now have.  Gratitude is visible in their eyes as they continue to press on bringing hope to those who have lost everything.

Sebastiao Salgado depicts this beautifully with two magnificent African women caring for two young children and even though both have lost limbs, you feel hope and a feeling of love for them and their future.  The National Center of Biotechnology Information says that Over 90 percent of the people who lived and were interviewed had hope for the future. 

Works Cited

"The Aftermath of War: in the Minefields of Mozambique." National Center for Biotechnology Information. Web. 11 Mar. 2010. 

Salgado, Sebastião. Photograph. Migrations: Humanity in Transition. New York: Aperture, 2000. 233. Print. 4 Mar. 2010.

The Troll who lived under the bridge

Jakarta, Indonesia- The troll who lived under the bridge was a childhood story that haunted some young children, but in Indonesia instead of trolls under the bridge, immigrants live with families that have nowhere else to turn.  During 1996, more and more immigrants were flocking to Jakarta to start a new life where a city was beginning to blossom.  Jakarta is the capitol city of Indonesia, but is a city of slums, gangs, and violence.  For many, these bridges represent a safe haven from the trolls that are lurking, not under the bridge, but above it (Jakarta Globe).

This capitol city originally was designed to hold a little over 800,000 people, but currently there are as many as 25,000,000 people and the numbers are growing.   The government has continued to struggle to provide housing for the new immigrants resulting in people living under bridges, along rivers, and on railway lines (Jakarta Globe). 

Works Cited

Kurniwati, Dewi. “Jakarta Faces Swelling Population and Shortfall of Proper Housing.” Jakarta Globe. Jakarta Globe, 3 Nov. 2009. Web. 4 Mar. 2010.

Salgado, Sebastião. Photograph. Migrations: Humanity in Transition. New York: Aperture, 2000. 423. Print. 4 Mar. 2010.