POVERTY IN BRAZIL AND THE RIO DE JANEIRO METROPOLIS: old problems, new dilemmas

We aim to analyze the trajectory of poverty in Brazil and the metropolis of Rio de Janeiro, from 1976 to 2015, considering the structural changes in the Brazilian economy and society and the metropolitan context’s particularities. The poverty line used was defined by double the level of income sufficient for the acquisition of food necessary to guarantee the individual’s social reproduction. We could observe that the poverty rate varied according to the economic situation, with differences in levels and intensity between the metropolis and the country. Currently, unlike decades ago, people living in poverty are generally younger, have higher levels of education, and work in occupations that represent more prominent social positions in the social structure, which may have important implications in the changes in expectations of overcoming this condition, especially in the metropolitan context.