At first sight, family and community coexistence as a legal right for children and adolescents seems quite abstract, although it occupies a common place. Society easily accepts that every child has the right to be born and raised within a healthy, protective and safe home. However, social and personal vulnerability force many children to leave their families and live in foster homes or shelters, as a protective measure. The main goal of this paper is to analyze the challenges and transformations needed in order to enforce children and adolescents' rights, in compliance with the National Plan for Social Devel opment, Protection and Defense of the Rights of Children and Adolescents to Family and Community Coexistence and other previous laws (1998 Brazilian Federal constitution and Law n. 8069/90 Children and Teenager's Statute), by approaching the main aspects involving the responsibilities of Brazilian social policies, with an emphasis on public education.
Family coexistence; Rights; Children; Adolescents; Family; Protective measures; Policies; Education