The clandestine gold that circulates in the world leaves the lands where the Yanomami indigenous population lives and leaves a trail of misery, hunger, disease and death. The Yanomami are in the news due to malnutrition in their villages and the invasion of 25,000 miners into their territory. The land charred by predatory deforestation and the mercury that poisons the waters are part of a worldview that kills.
The cheap labor of young people in the forest, manipulated by money from drug trafficking, is the newest face of the tragedy – and that is what the photography series “Amazon and the gold of hunger” is about. For two years I haven been embedded with Brazilian Federal police while storming illegal gold mining deep in Amazon rainforest, inside Yanomami indigenous territory.
Despite these challenges, the Yanomami have been fighting to protect their territory and way of life. They have engaged in advocacy efforts, legal battles, and grassroots initiatives to defend their land rights and raise awareness about the threats they face. International attention and support have also been crucial in putting pressure on governments to enforce environmental regulations and respect indigenous rights in the Amazon region.
The images are a reflection of the hidden tragedy that is killing the first of us.
