Polícia mirim: The Militarization of Minors as a Pedagogical Project for Children and Young People in Palmeira dos Índios, Alagoas - Brazil (1980-1987)

This study aims to understand the meaning and significance that the actors attribute to the Fundação de Amparo ao Menor (Foundation for the Support of Minors) and to understand the importance of the "Polícia Mirim" (Young Police), as a training project, in the lives of these actors and in the life history of the institution. From a theoretical-methodological point of view, we opted for an interpretative phenomenological approach based on the assumptions of historical research, a comprehensive qualitative approach using semi-structured individual interviews as the technique and narrative as the method for presenting the results. At the same time, we used (auto)biographical accounts, through memories of experiences as a child police officer in the institution, to reveal relationships (social capital). As a result, the use of autobiographical accounts proved to be an important process of self-education, allowing for a critical analysis of the processes experienced, in a game of mirrors with everyone else's vision.

Keywords:
Junior Police; FUNDANOR; Institutional Experiences; (Auto)narrative; Militarization of Children and Young People as a formative project