The Wire | Survival
The New York Times reported on the fascinating story of an indigenous man living in the Brazilian Amazon, whose entire tribe is believed to have been slaughtered by ranchers. The man has survived on his own, in isolation, deep in the Amazon, for the past 2-3 decades.
Brazil has an agency tasked with aiding indigenous groups, Funai, who has been trying to make contact with the man through the years. The man has been understandably wary, going so far as to shoot and hit a government official with an arrow.
Funai recently released video footage of the man axing a tree.
From the Times article:
“This man, who is a mystery to us, has lost everything, his people, a series of cultural practices,” Mr. Algayer [a Funai official] said in a statement. “Yet, he has proven that, despite being all alone in the jungle, it’s possible to survive and resist joining mainstream society.”
“He is the ultimate symbol of resilience and resistance,” [Fiona Watson, the research and advocacy director at Survival International] said. “But we are witnessing genocide in real time. Once he’s gone, his people will have disappeared forever, along with all their history and knowledge. To me, that’s a huge loss, and one that can and must be stopped.”
(I'd also recommend reading the "Related Coverage" pieces at the Times.)
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