Pic of the week: the boy who moved a world to tears
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In October 2009, Diego Frazao Torquato moved much of Brazil to tears when this picture appeared in the media. Diego was playing at the funeral of his teacher, John Evandro da Silva, the man who had given him hope of escaping poverty through the mastery of a musical instrument in the AfroReggae group. John, one of the coordinators of AfroReggae, had been murdered in Rio de Janeiro.
Diego never overcame the pain of John’s death. A frail boy who battled with many diseases, he died of leukemia the following year, aged 12.
See his tears. They will never die.
H/t: Thanks to Lawrence Renes for sharing the picture.
Norman, as far as I know, he died on April 1st 2010
Thanks, Eduardo. I have amended the text.
You are welcome, Norman
That is some Sad stuff RIP talented lad
not all sad stories have a happy end .. sad that his teacher and mentor was murdered … sad that this boy died . Nothing to say … RIP …. awful,really… i have a lot to be thankful for..
You can feel the heaviest of his profound love and grief.
They can have their Jesus and the cross… MUSIC is life.
I am just glad that he experienced music in his short life, it could have been otherwise.
Diego never should have died of leukemia. Leukemia is treatable and curable. The favelas killed him and his teacher. Shameful that this happens in such a rich country as Brazil.
Lee, reading the portuguese news, I found out that the boy was, apparently, diagnosed with leukemia right AFTER he had gone an appendices emergency operation. And to add “salt to injury”, the boy’s mother was also in very fragile health state. So, the whole story is so painful for this beautiful baby boy’s life. OMG, the whole thing is just sad.
“The footage shows two men approaching Evandro and throwing him to the ground before shooting him. They then proceed to remove his jacket and flee the scene. A military police car then passes the scene, with a full view of Evandro lying on the ground. The officers do not assist Evandro but chase the thieves. On catching them, they do not arrest them but let them go.
The footage shows one of the thieves walking away just a few minutes later and afterwards, one of the officers putting Evandro’s belongings into the police car. The police drive off, and Evandro is left to bleed to death.
Evandro’s body was eventually found by other police officers on patrol. The confiscated items were discovered not to have been handed over to Evandro’s family but kept by the police officers.”
http://riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/rio-politics/outrage-over-afroreggae-killing/
And more violence, more recently:
http://riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/rio-politics/afroreggae-ngo-under-fire-in-rio/#
So, how long is it before the scenario is repeated?
Mi vem uma vontade enorme de chorar….
This leaves me speechless! I can feel Diego’s pain and suffering as I look into hiss eyes.
One sees the heartbreak and despair in his eyes..rejoice in the knowledgement, that he us free of pain in the arms of Jesus
simply moving
I can’t even look at this photo for more than 5 seconds at a time without tearing up. The pain n sadness in his eyes just pierces right thru me. I’m sure Diego and Mr. da Silva are cutting the rug up there tho, happy and healthy.
I’m sure that GOD wants good people at His side… They’re in a better place right now
So sad…
This picture has touched my heart in a way I can’t even explain.
The pain in Diego’s eyes took my breath away.
May you rest in peace angel…I will always remember you.