Over the course of the years, Brazil has faced unscrupulous forms of racism that has derailed the country’s unity and freedom of movement into locations known for certain races while barring others from accessing the same. Provided one is from a black community, they are considered dangerous and armed even with the police force who, apparently, has the mandate of protecting them. The stereotype of being dangerous and armed for all the black communities is based on historical assumptions of the nature of the black people right from their slavery days. To protect the whites and propagate white supremacy, police have been often involved in segregation. Local governments, as well as the national government, have defined no-go zones for the black communities who would otherwise be presumed likely to attack others if they violate the rules. In Favela, cases of police killing increased by 50% when 1,134 people, mostly young black males, were killed during the Rio games.
According to Hanchard (110), this is not the first time police killing cases on the young black males were reported. It has been a trend that has seen 950 killed in 2003 and 1,330 in 2007 (French 340). The police aim and shoot these people with live bullets claiming they are fighting drug dealing and protection of the tourists, who form a major source of revenue for the country. According to French (344), the report stipulated that the police justified these killings to the aggressiveness of their targets. They claim that most of the killed young black males were aggressive during that time. A report published by French (347), also claims that the young black people involved in violence were a victim of violence during their childhood. Almost 20% of the victims had witnessed homicide while young, 45% experienced violent assault and 32 saw one of their family members murdered (French 352). The increased police killing during Rio de Janeiro was based on the protection of the tourists on the beaches to protect sources of revenues which landed the young black males in trouble with the police even in Favela.
- Hanchard, M. Orpheus and Power: The Movimento Negro of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, Brazil, 1945- 1988. Print.
- French, J. Buried Alive: Imagining Africa in the Brazilian Northeast. 2016. Print
