Life
Black in Brazil
“The Brazilian elite says this is not a racist country, but if you look at whatever social indicator, you will see exclusion is endemic,” he said. “We want to open up to more Brazilians the legitimate spaces they deserve.”
Da Silva said outrage over his treatment in the elevator pushed him to fight back.
“I couldn’t let it go, especially since it was done in such a flagrant manner,” he said. “It just hurt too much. It hurt my soul. We can’t go backward. We can’t stay quiet anymore.
Turning Point
The changes mark a dramatic shift in a country that claims more than 90 million people of African descent but looks almost completely white on its TV screens and in its halls of power.
Starting in the 16th century, Portuguese slave traders sent about 5.5 million Africans to Brazil, with more than 3.3 million surviving the journey, according to historians. Brazil abolished slavery in 1888, the last country in the Americas to do so.
That African legacy is clear in census numbers. About half of Brazilians identified themselves in a 2005 survey as black or pardo, meaning a mix of races but predominantly white and black. Another half identified themselves as white, and less than 1 percent were Asian or indigenous.
