Racism in Brazilian Universities: Black Students Face Discrimination from Professors and Peers
On March 22, a black student from São Paulo's Faculdade Cásper Líbero accused a professor of making racist comments, which included remarks about Croatia and the hair of a Nigerian soccer player. The professor refuted the allegations, claiming he touched the student's hair out of "curiosity." The Africásper student collective brought the matter to light, leading to the professor's termination. Between 2016 and 2017, São Paulo's Public Security Secretariat documented a racial injury case in educational settings every five days. Jefferson Mariano highlighted a rise in overt defenses of racial privilege as more black students have enrolled in universities since the implementation of quota laws in 2012. Other notable incidents involved Gustavo Metropolo referring to João Gilberto Lima as a "slave," and professor José Guilherme de Almeida expressing hatred towards "blacks and browns."
Key facts
- A professor at Faculdade Cásper Líbero made racist comments in class on March 22, leading to her dismissal.
- São Paulo recorded a racial injury case in educational institutions every five days between 2016 and 2017.
- Since quota laws passed in 2012, 150,000 black students entered higher education in Brazil between 2013 and 2015.
- In 2015, 12.8% of black youth aged 18-24 reached university, compared to 26.5% of white youth.
- FGV student Gustavo Metropolo called a black classmate a "slave" on WhatsApp, resulting in a three-month suspension.
- IFSP professor José Guilherme de Almeida posted "I hate blacks and browns" on social media in March.
- Thamires Menezes left her journalism course after a professor said her afro hair disqualified her from being a news anchor in 2017.
- USP's Escola Politécnica has graduated only seven black women in its 121-year history.
Entities
Artists
- Jefferson Mariano
- João Gilberto Lima
- Tiago Vinícius dos Santos
- José Guilherme de Almeida
- Christopher de Lima Machado
- Fábio Santos Souza
- Thamires Menezes
- Larissa Mendes
- Gustavo Metropolo
Institutions
- Faculdade Cásper Líbero
- Africásper
- Secretaria Estadual da Segurança Pública de São Paulo
- IBGE
- Ministério da Educação
- FGV
- 4º DP
- USP
- IFSP
- Universidade Tiradentes
- Escola Politécnica
- Poli Negra
- Conselho Universitário da USP
Locations
- São Paulo
- Brazil
- Croatia
- Nigeria
- Aracaju
- Sergipe
- Salvador