The 2018 murder of Rio city councilwoman Marielle Franco inspired record numbers of Black women to get involved in politics. Winning proved harder – but it isn’t the only point of their campaigns.
In Brazil, a record 1,237 black women will stand for office in Sunday’s general election. As in the US, their campaigns reflect deep personal concern about rising racism and sexism in politics.
Race has long been a taboo subject in Brazil. With the March 14 killing of the black Rio politician Marielle Franco, any myth of the country as a ‘racial democracy’ has been broken wide open.