In Rio, even a ban can’t keep revelers from Carnival streets

By DIANE JEANTET
Associated Press

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The pandemic has disrupted Carnival in Rio de Janeiro for a second straight year. But revelers looking for sun, sea and samba are still finding ways to party. Thousands defied an official ban on street parties by dancing, singing and mingling to music on Saturday, sometimes as police looked on. Others attended more formal events that moved indoors this year after City Hall banned the  tightly packed street parties that are traditional. The indoor parties — and the fee to get in — are a heresy for many Brazilians who say that Carnival’s block parties are essentially parties by the people and for the people.