The national holiday of Nossa Senhora Aparecida , on Wednesday (12), is one of the dates remembered in this second week of October. In addition to the religious anniversary, the next few days also bring dates that emphasize the importance of health care.
The patron saint of Brazil shares the date with Children’s Day – Brazil is the only country that celebrates children on this day. Since 1925, many countries have celebrated International Children’s Day on June 1st. In 1959, the United Nations (UN) defined November 20 as World Children’s Day, with the adoption of the Universal Declaration of the Rights of the Child. This report by Radioagencia Nacional details the history of the date:
On this date, Hoje é Dia draws attention to one of the fundamental rights provided for in the Child and Adolescent Statute: the right to life and health.
In recent weeks, the country has been mobilizing in childhood vaccination campaigns against the poliomyelitis virus, a disease that can cause paralysis in the lower limbs. Infantile paralysis has not been reported in Brazil since 1989, but with lower adherence to the vaccine, the risks of recurrence have increased.
A report by Agência Brasil shows that vaccination of children has the biggest continuous drop in the last 30 years . The polio vaccination campaign failed to reach the target of 95% of the target audience , and was extended in several states. In Brazil, vaccination of children is mandatory in cases recommended by health authorities.
Health care
Still on health, on Tuesday (11) the National Obesity Prevention Day is celebrated. The date was created by the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise awareness of health risks and encourage the adoption of healthy habits. This is what the Ponto de Encontro program, on Rádio Nacional da Amazônia , did in this 2018 interview:
Obesity is, in addition to a public health problem, one of the many faces of poverty. That’s because the disease is related to a lack of nutrients, as well as hunger, along with excess fat . Caminhos da Reportagem portrays the theme and talks about bariatric surgery, a stomach reduction procedure sought after by some obese people.
Monday (10) marks World Mental Health Day. According to the WHO, “mental health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of health or infirmity”. The National Afternoon, from Rádio Nacional , addressed the theme in this 2020 program:
Situations resulting from social isolation and the covid-19 pandemic contributed to the illness of several people. Among the most affected portions is the female population. Factors such as overwork, triple shifts and social vulnerability were some of the causes that affect women’s mental health (read more in this report by Agência Brasil ).
International Rural Women’s Day
A quarter of the world’s population (by UN calculations) is honored on Saturday (15). It’s International Rural Women’s Day. Although they play a key role in agriculture, rural women are one of the groups most affected by poverty and food insecurity.
Check out the weekly list of Hoje é Dia with dates, historical facts and holidays:
Death of Brazilian Army volunteer Jovita Feitosa (155 years old) from Ceará – became famous for trying to enter the army dressed as a man and wanting to go fight in the Paraguay War
Death of Argentine-Cuban guerrilla, politician, journalist, writer and doctor Che Guevara (55 years old)
Athletics Day – honors one of the oldest sports practices in the world, known as “base sport”, since it uses the primary human movements: running, walking, jumping and throwing
World Post Day – created by the UN, honors the creation of the Universal Postal Union
Birth of Maranhão politician and journalist Neiva Moreira (105 years old)
Birth of American jazz pianist Thelonious Monk (105 years old)
World Mental Health Day – international commemoration, which has been instituted since 1992 by the World Federation for Mental Health, with the support of the Mental Health Foundation and the UN
National Day for the Fight against Violence against Women – celebrated since 1980, to mark the date on which countless women gathered on the steps of the Municipal Theater of São Paulo, as part of a national movement, in protest against the then growing rate of crimes against women across Brazil
International Girl’s Day – commemoration instituted by the UN, marks the progress made in promoting the rights of adolescent girls and women and recognizes the need to expand strategies to eliminate gender inequalities around the world
Day of the Person with Physical Disabilities – date established by Law No. 2,795, enacted on April 15, 1981 by the government of São Paulo, and later extended to the entire national territory. The purpose is to promote society’s awareness of the actions that must be taken to guarantee the quality of life and the promotion of the rights of people with physical disabilities.
National Obesity Prevention Day
Launch of the Escolinha Mirim program, broadcast on Rádio Nacional in Rio de Janeiro (68
years) – aimed at teaching children radio production mechanisms, and was broadcast on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays
Start of the National Radio Agency (18 years old)
Death of São Paulo politician and lawyer Ulysses Guimarães (30 years old)
Christopher Columbus arrives in America (530 years old)
Children’s Day – established by President Artur Bernardes in 1924, it only came to be widely celebrated after an advertising campaign in 1960
Day of Our Lady Aparecida, patron saint of Brazil
Birth of the composer and conductor Gilberto Ambrósio Garcia Mendes (100 years old)
International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction – established by the United Nations General Assembly
World Sight Day – mobile commemoration (2nd Thursday of October), under the responsibility of the World Health Organization and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness
Revelation of aerial photographs that started the Cuban Missile Crisis (60 years)
Death of Dutch spy Mata Hari (105 years old)
Launch of the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft (25 years)
International Day of Rural Women
Teacher’s Day – created in commemoration of the decree of Dom Pedro I, which established elementary education in Brazil
World Handwashing Day
Text translated using artificial intelligence.
