Diversity Defies a Rightward Shift in Brazil’s Congress

www.ozy.com [OZY]( OZY A Modern Media Company Share This Sh*t October 29, 2022 Share This Sh*t [The drop]( DIVERSITY DEFIES RIGHTWARD SHIFT IN BRAZIL'S CONGRESS On Sunday, millions of Brazilians will vote for their next president in a runoff between incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro and former two-term President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva — better known as just Lula. With Bolsonaro repeatedly casting doubts on the election process and refusing to commit to accepting the outcome — he trails Lula in polls — Brazil’s democracy itself is on the ballot. But a deeper political shift is already visible: Trans and Indigenous candidates registered remarkable wins in legislative elections earlier this month, even as the right also consolidated its positions — setting up a tense future for the second-largest nation in the Americas. 1 Making History — Death Threats Be Damned Sarah Brown in Rio de Janeiro [@BrSarahTr]( Three days before elections to the Brazilian Congress on Oct. 2, candidate Duda Salabert shared her experiences of the run up to a vote that was, in the eyes of many, the first stage of Brazil’s most important test as a democracy since the end of military rule 37 years ago. There were emails, letters, even a website made exclusively to describe the ways they wanted to kill me. - Duda Salabert “Five death threats in the last 30 days,” she [posted on social media](. “There were emails, letters, even a website made exclusively to describe the ways they wanted to kill me.” Salabert, one of a handful of trans women candidates in this year’s elections, went on to [detail]( how she and her family travel everywhere with a team of bodyguards, an armored car and bulletproof vests as a precaution against any possible transphobic attacks. Under this cloud of violence, Salabert made political history. As election day drew to a close, she celebrated a landslide victory as [the most voted for federal deputy]( ever in the state of Minas Gerais. Salabert and another pioneering candidate, Erika Hilton, also became the first two trans women to ever be elected to Brazil's Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Congress. In an additional victory for diversity, they were joined by seven Indigenous elected candidates — five as federal deputies, two as senators — the highest number in Brazil’s history. The two most acclaimed for their prominent activism for Indigenous rights are Sônia Guajajara, who was [one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People]( this year, and [Célia Xakriabá](. Their presence amplifies the Indigenous voice in Congress, previously only represented by Joênia Wapichana, who, in 2018, became the first Indigenous woman elected to Brazil’s Congress. “The election of these two deputies is a spectacular gain for the defense of Indigenous people’s rights in Congress,” Kenzo Jucá, parliamentary advisor to the [Instituto Socioambiental](, a nonprofit that advocates for Indignenous rights, told OZY by phone. “With the Indigenous bench having been strengthened, I think the Indigenous people are in a good position.” Hilton, Guajajara and Xakriabá are from the left-wing Socialism and Liberty Party, while Salabert belongs to the center-left Democratic Labour Party. Their wins represent a turning point for Brazil, adding some much-needed representation in a Congress mostly made up of white male deputies and senators. Black representatives make up [just a quarter](of the 540 lawmakers in Congress even though more than half of the country’s population identifies as Afro-Brazilian. Women represent [less than 20%](of policymakers in the Chamber of Deputies, although this is an increase from the previous legislative assembly. This year also saw [18 LGBT+ candidates]( elected into state and federal posts as well as [44% more trans]( hopefuls than in the last federal elections four years ago. HAVE A GENIUS IDEA? WANT $10,000? Life's too short to not dream big! The OZY Genius Awards support college students' young, bright minds. Application Deadline is October 31, 2022! Don't wait! [APPLY HERE]( Right Rise Diversity may be on the rise, but so is a rightward tilt in Brazilian politics that has embraced far-right conspiratorial and supremacist ideologies in ways very similar to sections of the Republican Party in the United States that swear allegiance to former President Donald Trump. Current President Jair Bolsonaro’s so-called Liberal Party [won 99]( of the 513 seats up for grabs in the lower house — 22 more than before — and parties allied with Bolsonaro now represent half of the Chamber of Deputies. Meanwhile, the Workers’ Party of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a leftist from the Workers’ Party who governed Brazil from 2003 to 2010, won 10 more seats, but it remains the second-largest party in the lower house, with 68 members in total. Either way, the result in Congress means that, even if Lula wins, his administration and left-leaning lawmakers could face a hostile environment in trying to pass legislation and push through progressive policies. In a surprising triumph for the right, the [Liberal Party also won eight seats](of the 27 up for election in the Senate this year, three more than in the last election. “We elected the largest benches in the House and Senate, which was our highest priority in this first moment,” [tweeted]( Bolsonaro the day after the first round of elections. Bolsonaro also performed significantly better in his reelection bid than most polls had suggested. He now faces Lula — who is currently a slight favorite to win — in an Oct. 30 runoff vote for the presidency. Either way, the result in Congress means that, even if Lula wins, his administration and left-leaning lawmakers could face a hostile environment in trying to pass legislation and push through progressive policies. “Bolsonarism” — the current president’s far-right movement supported by political and social conservatives and evangelicals — looks poised to remain a significant force in Brazil irrespective of whether Bolsonaro himself wins on Sunday. “In our perspective, although both [Salabert and Hilton] are highly qualified and prepared for the challenges posed, the Chamber is taken by an anti-democratic and anti-people ideology,” Bruna Benevides, the policy secretary at Brazil’s [National Association of Transvestites and Transsexuals (ANTRA)](, told OZY in an emailed statement. “With this, we believe that we cannot place the responsibility for the changes we want on these two people. Even in alliances with other parliamentarians from the progressive camp, we will still be at a disadvantage.” However, Jucá says that there are still enough Lula allies in Congress to offset the rightward rise and allow new legislation to restore minority rights largely undermined in the last four years. “The Bolsonaro allies don’t have the greater capacity to try to stop the resumption of the reconstruction of everything that has been dismantled during the current president’s term of office,” Jucá said. “I believe that, despite everything, we still have a good outlook.” Fighting for Social Inclusion On the surface, there has been some progress on trans rights in Brazil in recent years. In 2018, the Supreme Court ruled that [trans people could officially change their gender](without undergoing surgery or going to court and in 2019, [transphobia was written into legislation as a crime](. However, these laws have failed to prevent the country from having the largest number of murders of trans and queer people in the world. In 2021, Brazil led the list for the [13th consecutive year]( and registered the highest murder toll since 2008, when such data was first recorded. According to the [Transgender Europe (TGEU) 2021 report](, based on global data from trans and LGBTQIA+ institutions, there were 125 murders victimizing this population in Brazil — one every three days — between October 2020 and September 2021. The report also warns of the high likelihood of several unreported cases and unregistered deaths. Trans people in Brazil also suffer discrimination in the job market. Almost all — [nine in every 10]( trans Brazilians — resort to prostitution due to limited employment options, according to data from [ANTRA in 2017](. The undeniable fact that the presence of Erika and Duda in that place will promote necessary and significant changes and will bring us hope, despite the completely violent scenario driven by misogyny, transphobia and racism. - Bruna Benevides Indigenous peoples are another minority group that face prejudice and human rights violations. In 2017, Bolsonaro [vowed not to demarcate]( “even a centimeter” of native people’s land. It was a promise he kept as president, leaving Indigenous communities vulnerable to illegal territorial invasions by loggers, ranchers, miners and hunters, all of which have [surged under Bolsonaro’s presidency](. “The demarcation process has been paralyzed since the beginning of this current government,” Jucá said. The president’s dismantling of environmental and Indigenous protection agencies [has also coincided]( with increased violence against Indigenous peoples, who often work as land defenders to protect their ancestral territories from invasions, [leading to conflicts with criminal groups](. Despite the rightward shift in Congress, activists remain hopeful that having Indigenous federal deputies can bring increased visibility to the sufferings native peoples face. “When politicians don’t understand Indigenous issues, they support bills that take away our rights,” Marinalva Kamaka Pataxó Hã-Hã-Hãe, an Indigenous leader and activist, told OZY by phone. “Now, no matter who is elected as president, these Indigenous women candidates will be able to teach Congress about Indigenous issues. I’m optimistic about this.” Meanwhile, Benevides believes that having two trans women in the lower house will also spur positive action for trans rights in the country, regardless of the rising socially conservative movement in Congress. “The undeniable fact that the presence of Erika and Duda in that place will promote necessary and significant changes and will bring us hope, despite the completely violent scenario driven by misogyny, transphobia and racism,” Benevides said. “Without a doubt, they leave a legacy that standing up for rights changes reality.” Do you think the U.S. is ready to elect a trans candidate to Congress in the November midterms? Tell us why or why not. 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