The life of Chico Mendes

Chico Mendes started life in the Amazon in Brazil, at the age of nine Chico Mendes; unlike nine year old boys over in England he had a job as a rubber tapper just like his father before him. Until the 70’s schools were forbidden in many rudder estates in the Amazon. The majority of rubber tappers could not read or write, their bosses did not want them to learn because they would soon find out how much they were being exploited.

They did not try to rebel against them because if they did they would lose their lives so they keep quite. Until one afternoon in 1962 a stranger passed by Chico’s house, he said that for exchange in learning Chico to read and write he wanted Chico to learn him to rubber tapper. When Chico grew up he became lead of the rubber tappers union as their previous leader was murdered. Chico started a movement that was trying to stop the landowners cutting down the rain forest so they could build and use the rest of the land for cattle ranches. Chico married and later became a father of two children. Chico went to great lengths to stop the rainforest being destroyed. He was approached by an English film maker who wanted to make a film about the rubber tappers and their fight to save their rain forest. The film maker took Chico all around the world and he got under the landowners skin so a very good friend of Chico was murdered this got al over the front covers of the papers, so the leaders of Brazil made a deal with Chico that would make the rain forest a protected reserve. The landowners were out -raged to hear this and they shot Chico which killed him. Even through Chico is not living his dream still is today. A total of 21 reserves that cover over 9 million acres of land all over the world.

By Sarah Bloor 9OA