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Brazil's iconic Christ the Redeemer statue welcomes Taylor Swift

In return for the display, the Swifties were tasked with gathering funds for the Catholic Church’s World Day of the Poor.
Brazil's iconic Christ the Redeemer statue welcomes Taylor Swift
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Karma is a shirt on an iconic statue welcoming Taylor Swift!

Right before Swift kicks off her three-night Eras Tour in Rio's Estádio Nilton Santos, her "Junior Jewels" tee, straight out of the “You Belong With Me” video, made a cheeky cameo on the Christ the Redeemer statue. Talk about a solid rock-star fashion statement!

In the music video, the shirt displays "Junior Jewels," but in the projection on the 125-foot statue, it shows "Welcome to Brasil."

The screen appeared following a request from Rio's mayor, Eduardo Paes, and the Brazilian Swifties to Father Omar Raposo, who is responsible for maintaining the monument.

But the gesture came at a price — for a good cause, of course.

In return for the display, Father Omar requested that the Swifties help gather funds for 20,000 panettones and water for the Catholic Church’s World Day of the Poor Sunday.

By Thursday night, unsurprisingly to no one, the Swifties had met their goal.

In a single remarkable day of crowdfunding, the Swifties raked in 180,000 reais (approximately $37,000), footing the bill for panettones and water, that will help over 120 social institutions backed by the Catholic sanctuary that manages the statue and thousands of homeless, the sanctuary stated.

“Young people like challenges. So we directed the energy of fans to do good,” said Father Omar. “This can and will be replicated! It's a mobilization for solidarity, Christ the Redeemer descending the Corcovado mountain to impact society.”

The globally recognized Christ statue has been a symbol of Christianity for almost a century, not just in Brazil but across Latin America. Today, millions of tourists flock to capture selfies with the iconic statue, which earned the title of one of the new Seven Wonders of the World in 2017.


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