1
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[Music playing: "Casas Viejas" 
by Francisco Canaro and Ada Falcón]

2
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My name is Rolando Arenos.

3
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I have lived in this neighborhood 
for roughly 46 years.

4
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We came here from the countryside, 
from the mountains.

5
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There was no water.
There was no sewage system.

6
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We would have committee 
meetings on weekends.

7
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Taking out dirt, making piles.

8
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And that's how we started to build
our neighborhood, bit by bit.

9
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We used to beg the mayor 
to install a sanitation system.

10
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Not to give it to us for free. 
To charge us.

11
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He kept refusing to install 
any public utilities.

12
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So when we realized he was not
going to install any utilities

13
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we took the electricity from over there,

14
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we drank the water from Santa Margarita.

15
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We went back to to the mayor, and he 
said, "You all don't know when to stop."

16
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"If you come back and break the water 
pipes, I'm going to throw you in jail."

17
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So we decided on collective action.

18
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We made a proposal, and the mayor said,

19
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"You have left me with no choice. 
We will install the utilities."

20
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We were born here. 
We're staying here. No evictions.

21
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This is the Cascada neighborhood.

22
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Out of 185 homes, 75 have received eviction 
notices due to the occupants' risk of death,

23
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due to the crumbling structures,

24
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caused by unstable incomes and other 
events in the neighborhood's history.

25
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The problem in associated with 
this neighborhood because

26
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it's on a piece of land that provides 
structural support to a highway

27
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and it's bound by

28
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the Cascada ravine, the Chaguala ravine, 
and Ocean Highway.

29
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When they built the highway...

30
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Interviewer: The highway 
wasn't there before?

31
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No. There was a road, 
but it was very small.

32
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Then they made it wider.

33
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And when they made it wider, 
they damaged the houses.

34
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It looked like a handmade dirt temple.

35
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Then afterwards, they put up a wall.

36
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And even with that wall, they continued 
to damage the neighborhood.

37
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This community has had a problem 
for nine or ten years.

38
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They had to fix the highway,

39
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which is directly above the neighborhood,

40
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because it became unstable and 
part of the mountain collapsed

41
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and blocked that part of the roadway, 
and there was a landslide.

42
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My name is Maria Isabel Muñoz, 
and I live in the Cascada neighborhood.

43
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The situation has gotten worse since 1999,

44
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with the widening of the highway 
that goes towards the ocean.

45
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Because of the construction of a wall, 
carried out by the state,

46
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which was not built according to code,

47
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and did not take into account the runoff

48
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from the mountain where they built 
housing for displaced families.

49
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They damaged the water from the aqueduct. 


50
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Because over there, on the side, 
there's a big tube

51
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And on this side, there was another one.

52
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And they damaged both.

53
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So the excuses started, more, 
and more, and more of them

54
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and we would tell them, "The water 
is coming right through here."

55
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Engineers came, but they said,

56
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"The issue is, we can't start any trouble 
with the government." Understand?

57
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And they'd say to us,

58
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"Why don't you leave the neighborhood? 
Why are you still here?"

59
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Why should we leave?

60
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I'd argue with them,

61
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I'd say, "Since you live somewhere 
else, someplace nice."

62
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"You couldn't care less. We do care 
because we live here."

63
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We live here, so we do care.

64
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It's been 14 years.

65
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Imagine that.

66
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14, 15 years practically. And we've 
been fighting the government....

67
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Let's see what happens now.

68
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I've put a lot of money into my house.

69
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I haven't been able able to fix it 
perfectly because I don't have the means.

70
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But the house won't fall. 
The way I have it -- it won't fall.

71
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I have a lot of these columns.

72
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I have about 11 of them .

73
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You know area behind this neighborhood?

74
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They're building a 33-story 
building. Imagine that.

75
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Interviewer: "That one won't fall."

76
00:06:28,809 --> 00:06:30,185
Those buildings don't fall.

77
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A friend of mine lives over there.

78
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He has a small farm.

79
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I talked to him recently, and he told me, 
"Hey man, I'm fed up."

80
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They keep asking him if he'll sell 
his land. And he refuses.

81
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It hurts me. A lot of people aren't 
in any condition to move.

82
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They're kicking us out 
as if we were animals,

83
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into these 32 square meter boxes when 
we're used to living with normal comforts.

84
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There are nice houses here.

85
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My house is not big, but I was fine there.

86
00:07:23,013 --> 00:07:25,580
Now they're telling me, 
'Go live over there!'

87
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They gave me an apartment 
but I haven't taken it.

88
00:07:28,017 --> 00:07:31,294
I told them, "I'm not taking it 
because I'm not displaced"

89
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I'm not going anywhere. You damaged 
my house, now you have to fix it.

90
00:07:35,900 --> 00:07:39,796
Once it's fixed, then 
I'll decide what to do.

91
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I receive financial assistance to help 
pay my rent every first of the month.

92
00:07:44,843 --> 00:07:49,287
They tell me they're going to take it 
away because I haven't demolished my house.

93
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because I haven't followed 
the demolition order.

94
00:07:51,305 --> 00:07:55,283
I told them I'm not going to demolish it 
until you fix my housing situation.

95
00:07:55,283 --> 00:07:58,605
I don't want an apartment. 
I didn't ask for that.

96
00:07:58,605 --> 00:08:03,924
I want an old house or a new house. Or 
money so that I can choose whatever I want.

97
00:08:03,924 --> 00:08:07,053
Whatever the government can give me. 
And if not, I won't leave.

98
00:08:07,323 --> 00:08:10,662
The government tells me, "Well, ma'am, you 
have an order to receive temporary housing.

99
00:08:10,662 --> 00:08:13,441
That's it. It's final. You have to go."

100
00:08:13,441 --> 00:08:17,112
I said, "If you take away my subsidy and 
don't fix anything, I'm going back home.

101
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I'll fix it and stay there."

102
00:08:18,743 --> 00:08:22,334
Why don't they invest more in our 
neighborhood instead of kicking us out?

103
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There's people that gave and fought a lot 
to build a home for themselves.

104
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Some people didn't care.

105
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They took the apartment and they left. 
And they're fine over there.

106
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Everyone has their own opinion.

107
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I was going to move into the apartment.

108
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But it was so small that I said, 
"I won't take it."

109
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I asked the lawyer, "If I don't take the 
apartment what happens?"

110
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He said, "Ma'am, you're not required to 
take it if you don't want it."

111
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So I told him, "If I didn't have 
anywhere to go, I'd take it.

112
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But I have a house and 
I worked hard for it."

113
00:08:53,373 --> 00:08:59,971
The failure to prevent future 
risks for these communities

114
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has led to larger and more 
complicated risks on the ground.

115
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This could have been prevented,

116
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had the original 
construction had been done properly.

117
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About 14-15 years ago, residents 
began to file complaints

118
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because their houses were falling apart.

119
00:09:24,085 --> 00:09:31,003
The residents blame this, in part, on the 
work that began about 10, 11 years ago

120
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on the construction of a westward highway 
towards the New West suburb.

121
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Now there are about 15 thousand 
residences in that area.

122
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That's what they did up there.

123
00:09:49,250 --> 00:09:51,928
There were lots of explosions over there.

124
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Oh man, when they were building there, 
everyday it was like,

125
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BAM, BAM, BAM, BAM.

126
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And that's what lived through right here.

127
00:10:04,537 --> 00:10:08,384
We've had this problem in our 
area for 14 years.

128
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Houses deteriorate because of runoff and 
underground water flow

129
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caused by excessive construction 
in the New West suburb.

130
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It has been disturbing us but we haven't

131
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gotten the attention 
we deserve from the state.

132
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We demand that the state,

133
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and we demand that the City of Medellin, 


134
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gotten the attention 
we deserve from the state.

135
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seeing as the was damage caused

136
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by excessive construction 
in the New West suburb,

137
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where the city has 
put it's population growth.

138
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We ask for help in the 
recovery of our neighborhood

139
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being that we've been here for 50 years
and that we want to stay here.

140
00:10:59,141 --> 00:11:02,734
There is a social fabric here, 
there are roots here,

141
00:11:02,734 --> 00:11:06,127
and the City of Medellin isn't 
taking this into account.

142
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They say, "Leave the neighborhood."

143
00:11:14,822 --> 00:11:18,049
But we say that we're going to stay here.

144
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Or build good apartments here, big ones, 
where we can fit our lives.

145
00:11:28,631 --> 00:11:32,883
But these little apartments, they only 
have 2 bedrooms, you understand?

146
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We have the right to a dignified life and 
they should respect our wishes.

147
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We want to regain our rights, 
since we've lost them.

148
00:11:49,386 --> 00:11:56,250
We demand our neighborhood's recovery. 
We breathe peace and tranquility here.

149
00:11:56,830 --> 00:12:02,697
No more evictions. We were born here, 
and we will stay here.

150
00:12:03,527 --> 00:12:07,341
We don't want discrimination 
in our neighborhood.

151
00:12:07,341 --> 00:12:10,684
Don't violate our rights.

152
00:12:10,684 --> 00:12:14,161
We demand the right to a dignified home.

153
00:12:14,161 --> 00:12:17,197
We don't want more evictions 
in the La Cascada neighborhood.

154
00:12:17,197 --> 00:12:22,532
We want to continue being the same unified
neighborhood that we've always been.

155
00:12:22,532 --> 00:12:26,488
We want to stay in our neighborhoods, 
in our homes.

156
00:12:26,488 --> 00:12:28,404
They need to respect that right.

157
00:12:28,404 --> 00:12:35,312
We want to stay in our neighborhood, 
where we were born and raised.

158
00:12:35,312 --> 00:12:41,081
The problem they caused needs a just 
solution. And no more evictions.

159
00:12:41,391 --> 00:12:45,899
We are not displaced, and we do not 
want to become displaced.

160
00:12:45,899 --> 00:12:50,388
We have the right to put the pieces 
of the puzzle back together.

161
00:12:50,388 --> 00:12:55,642
It got messed up by large corporations 
that came and, from one day to the next,

162
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managed to destroy our community,

163
00:12:58,526 --> 00:13:05,650
When the eyes of the world are upon us, 
the government listens to us.

164
00:13:06,150 --> 00:13:13,118
When these eyes are no longer on us, 
the government goes blind.

165
00:13:13,288 --> 00:13:16,820
"I've never seen you. 
I don't remember you.

166
00:13:16,820 --> 00:13:21,227
We've never discussed this. Leave a 
message with my assistant.

167
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Etc., etc., etc."

168
00:13:22,614 --> 00:13:27,882
If you come here late at night, 
you'll see there is no thievery going on.

169
00:13:27,882 --> 00:13:37,318
There are no break ins. You can leave for
a month, and no one will touch your house.

170
00:13:37,318 --> 00:13:39,854
You come back and everything
is like you left it.

171
00:13:40,334 --> 00:13:44,062
In other parts of town, you go there 
at night and you'll get robbed.

172
00:13:44,662 --> 00:13:50,133
This is a really good neighborhood to 
live in. It's great for raising a family.

173
00:13:52,023 --> 00:13:55,690
That's why we're fighting. 
So that they don't kick us out.

174
00:13:56,346 --> 00:14:05,850
We don't know if this area could be 
declared a priority interest

175
00:14:05,850 --> 00:14:12,304
so the state could immediately make 
the necessary investments,

176
00:14:12,304 --> 00:14:16,974
But we also have to think about how 
we could guarantee that it get done

177
00:14:16,974 --> 00:14:20,204
with the lowest possible 
impact on the residents.

178
00:14:20,204 --> 00:14:27,724
We should uproot as few families 
as possible, even temporarily.

179
00:14:27,724 --> 00:14:29,337
How is this accomplished?

180
00:14:29,337 --> 00:14:32,927
ThIs is a situation that needs 
to be resolved by the government,

181
00:14:32,927 --> 00:14:42,577
by local social organizations, 
and by human rights groups

182
00:14:42,577 --> 00:14:49,198
in order to undertake an analysis
and come to an agreement

183
00:14:49,198 --> 00:14:53,800
with this community to decide what is 
best to guarantee their rights to a home,

184
00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:58,707
their rights to human development, 
their rights to social development,

185
00:14:58,707 --> 00:15:02,394
and the right to the roots 
they have in this area.

186
00:15:02,394 --> 00:15:06,691
We are few, but we are united.

187
00:15:06,841 --> 00:15:09,748
And united we are strong.

188
00:15:12,728 --> 00:15:16,434
And with that strength, 
we will fight for our neighborhood.

189
00:15:16,434 --> 00:15:22,746
Yes we can! Yes we can!

190
00:15:22,746 --> 00:15:27,478
We are the future of our neighborhood!