Chapter 1: Introduction

ABSTRACT Title of Document: TUNNEL VISION: URBAN RENEWAL IN RIO DE JANEIRO, 1960-1975 Mark Edward Kehren, Doctor of Philosophy, 2006 Directed By: Professor Barbara Weinstein Department of History University of Maryland Following the inauguration of the newly constructed capital of Brasília in April 1960, the former federal district and Brazilian capital of Rio de Janeiro was transformed into the city-state of Guanabara. Although Rio lost its status as the political capital of Brazil after nearly 200 years, extensive urban renewal campaigns to modernize the city were employed by numerous politicians, planners, architects, artists, and ordinary residents to help restore Rio’s position as Brazil’s “true” capital city. This dissertation examines these urban renewal efforts in Guanabara from 1960 to 1975 - a period when Rio de Janeiro experienced its largest period of population and spatial growth. Whereas many of the urban renewal campaigns and projects for development prior to 1945 were intended to beautify, embellish, and “civilize” the city, the projects of the 1960s and 1970s were highly technical and revolved around integrating the automobile into the urban landscape. The measures of investment and resources devoted to modernizing and reforming the city during the Guanabara period were unprecedented for Rio de Janeiro, consequently resulting in significant spatial, social, cultural, and economic reorganization of the city. “Tunnel Vision: Urban Renewal in Rio de Janeiro, 1960-1975” examines specific projects of urban renewal such as tunnels (Rebouças and Santa Bárbara), expressways, parks (Aterro do Flamengo), subways, overpasses, and beaches while also exploring the technocratic approach to urban planning which was demonstrated through attitudes and principles that often marginalized “non-expert” participation in reforming the city. Using diverse primary sources such as government and urban planning documents, as well as neighborhood association materials, this dissertation also considers broader historical issues such as the politics and culture of military regimes, as well as questions related to the built environment, comparative planning cultures, space, class, race, ethnicity, and popular culture. Furthermore, this study also argues that the politics and culture of urban planning in Rio de Janeiro during the Guanabara period mirrored many of the same political, cultural, and social tensions that existed throughout Brazil and Latin America before and after the Brazilian military coup of 1964. TUNNEL VISION: URBAN RENEWAL IN RIO DE JANEIRO, 1960-1975 By Mark Edward Kehren Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2006 Advisory Committee: Professor Barbara Weinstein, Chair Professor Daryle Williams Professor Mary Kay Vaughan Professor Mary Corbin Sies Professor Phyllis Peres © Copyright by Mark Edward Kehren 2006 Acknowledgements I owe a great deal to the numerous people who have helped me since I began the initial research for my dissertation beginning in the late 1990s. While my name ultimately appears as the author of this study, many generous and supportive people have contributed to the final product. The majority of the research for this dissertation was conducted in various archives, libraries, and research institutes throughout Rio de Janeiro over a span of several years. I particularly wish to thank the staffs at the Arquivo Geral da Cidade do Rio de Janeiro, O Centro de Pesquisa e Documentação de História Contemporânea do Brasil of the Fundação Getúlio Vargas, O Arquivo Nacional, Fundação Geo-Rio, O Instituto Brasileiro de Administração Municipal (IBAM), and the Clube de Engenharia. I would also like to thank Professor Renato Tarciso Barbosa de Sousa and the library staff at the Universidade de Brasília for accommodating my visit to Brasília to consult the Coleção Carlos Lacerda, albeit during a strike. Without having access to those documents, I would not have been able to write the majority of this dissertation. Additionally, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Dona Paula Pinto and other members of the Associação de Assistência e Orientação dos Moradores do Catumbi for granting me access to many of the Association’s newspapers and other historical documents. The time I ii spent in Catumbi was one of the main highlights of my dissertation research. Marly Silva da Motta, a prominent historian of the Guanabara period at the Centro de Pesquisa e Documentação de História Contemporânea do Brasil of the Fundação Getúlio Vargas (CPDOC-FGV) in Rio de Janeiro, has been extremely supportive of my work on the Guanabara period. I am enormously grateful for her time, knowledge, and advice that she has given to me over the years. Rachel Esther Figner Sisson has also been a major influence on my project since my first days in the field as she has taught me many things about Rio de Janeiro’s architectural history and spatial development. Without the advice, guidance, and support from Marly and Rachel, my numerous research trips to Rio de Janeiro would not have been nearly as productive or enjoyable. I also would like to thank Mauricio Perez, Angela Santos, and Mauro Osorio for stimulating conversations about their own research experiences on the Guanabara period. Stateside, I would like to thank the Departments of History at the University of Maryland and the State University of New York at Stony Brook for academic and financial support throughout my graduate studies. I also would like to express thanks to the Goldhaber Travel Fund, the Hearst Foundation, and the David C. Driskell Center for the Study of the African Diaspora at the University of Maryland for funding several of my research trips to Brazil. I also would like to thank the iii Departments of History at the Catholic University of America and George Mason University for providing me with office space while I wrote the majority of this dissertation. Both institutions were extremely supportive of my teaching and research endeavors during my employment as an adjunct instructor of history. Many scholars and historians have been extremely influential in my development as a teacher and scholar since I began my graduate studies at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Professors Brooke Larson, Paul Gootenberg, Olufemi Vaughan, and Aisha Khan offered tremendous mentoring since my first semester in graduate school. Furthermore, I would like to thank Professors Mary Kay Vaughan, Mary Corbin Sies, and Phyllis Peres for offering helpful advice and valuable feedback while serving on my dissertation advisory committee at the University of Maryland. I also have been blessed to have the support of fellow graduate students and friends while writing the dissertation. I would not have persevered without the camaraderie and support of Dennis Doyle, Amy Gangloff, Ricardo Lopez, Sarah Sarzynski, Francisco Rogido, Carrie McKellogg, Ana Nogueira, Linda Noel, Paula Halperin, and Leandro Benmergui. I particularly owe two people for supporting my academic and professional development over the past years. First, I wish to thank Professor Daryle Williams for his genuine enthusiasm and support for my work on Rio de Janeiro since my arrival at the University of Maryland. iv His passion for the city of Rio de Janeiro has generated numerous interesting conversations and suggestions to which I learned a great deal about the Cidade Maravilhosa and Brazilian History. Ultimately, this dissertation would not have been possible without the mentoring and patience of my advisor, Professor Barbara Weinstein. Since the initial stages of identifying a dissertation topic in 1997, she has always offered incredible support and advice for my interdisciplinary approach to the history of Rio de Janeiro and Brazil. None of these chapters would have been possible without her consistent dedication and encouragement. I am deeply indebted to her knowledge, advice, time, and patience that she has given to me since my very first week of graduate school. Her role as a dissertation advisor, mentor, and scholar is clearly academia’s gold standard, and I have been extremely privileged and fortunate to have been her advisee. My family has been a major source of inspiration throughout the process of writing the dissertation as my sister Michelle and her family (Mark, Sarah, and Audra) have offered tremendous encouragement throughout my graduate studies. I especially wish to thank my mother and father-in-law, Lêda Lourenço Veras da Cunha and Luiz Carlos Veras da Cunha, for continuous encouragement, support, and hospitality during my numerous trips to Brazil. Likewise, I also would like to thank Andréia, Carla, Mário, Alexandre, Carlos Eduardo, Matheus, and Lucas for their help and hospitality. My parents, Alfred and Carol, continuously v have supported my academic endeavors throughout graduate school, and I am forever grateful for their multiple forms of support, love, and advice. It brings me great pleasure that I can present them my dissertation to which they contributed well beyond the call of duty. None of my academic or professional progress over the past nine years would have been possible without the companionship of my wife, Monica da Cunha Kehren. Aside from her moral and financial support, advice, patience, encouragement, and love, she was also a major contributor to this dissertation. She often rearranged her own professional work schedule and

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