Brazil
This page features the news on disability from Brazil in the Debrief Library. See also news from other countries.
Contents
Ageing
Back to contents.
‘Our country is getting old’: the man changing how Brazil sees dementia. “Developing countries are getting old in a shorter period of time without resources and with poverty.” (Jun, the Guardian)
Black Lives Matter and Racial justice
Back to contents.
The Situation of Black People with Disabilities in Brazil “The historical context of the black population with disabilities in Brazil is underpinned by the history of enslavement and the impacts of colonization that last until today.” (Mar, Minority Rights International)
A report on the situation for black and other marginalized persons with disabilities. (Oct, Minority Rights Group)
Communication and Language
Back to contents.
Braille
Braille: accessibility improves in Brazil, but still needs to advance. Almost one in four blind Brazilians are illiterate. (Jan, Agência Brasil)
Data and Research
Back to contents.
Research
An edition of Anthropological Horizons focussed on disability. (In Portuguese, Oct, Scielo)
Digital Accessibility and Technology
Back to contents.
Online Accessibility
The Brazilians advocating for digital accessibility. (Sep, Fair Planet)
Education and Childhood
Back to contents.
Studies on disability in education: anti-ableism, intersectionality, and the ethics of care. (link to pdf, in Portuguese, UDESC)
Employment, Business and Work
Back to contents.
A new approach is needed to ensure equality in the work place for autistic people:
“As an autistic woman from a favela, my experience with the job market has always been an uphill struggle because the selection processes are designed for neurotypical people, who generally are at ease with oral communication normative social skills, while the specific communication styles of autistic and neurodiverse people are not considered. My work with the Black Lives with Disabilities Matter Movement (Vidas Negras com Deficiência in Portuguese), a movement that focuses on race and disability [...] has helped me to understand that these selective processes were built to prioritize white and non-disabled bodies.” (Jun, Minority Rights Group International)
Inclusion with Accessibility at Work a site with quite a few resources (in Portuguese)
Health
Back to contents.
The National Health Policy for People with Disabilities: An Analysis of the Content, Context and the Performance of Social Actors. “The coming to power of ultra-right governments triggered fiscal austerity, a setback in the implementation of the care network and a weakening in the content of various social policies related to the care of people with disabilities. During this era, the political approach changed, with the attempt to evade the role of the State, and the perspective of guaranteeing social rights. Undoubtedly, the neoliberal offensive on social policies, especially the Unified Health System, is the main obstacle to the effective implementation of the PNPCD in Brazil.” (Jun, Health Policy and Planning)
History and Memorial
Back to contents.
Overview
Romeu Sassaki died at 84 years old a vital figure working on inclusion in Brazil. (Links in Portuguese, Sep, Terra) See more about his 60 years of work on inclusion and an online meeting with tributes.
In Brazil, the Museum of Inclusion's exhibition on Fights, Rights and Conquests of persons with disabilities. (in Portuguese, Museum of Inclusion)
Remembering Judy Heumann
World loses Judy Heumann (In Portuguese, Mar, Jornalismo Diário PcD)
Justice Systems and Legal Capacity
Back to contents.
Outrage as mentally ill Black man dies in police car ‘gas chamber’ (May, the Guardian) See also on Human Rights Watch.
Lived Experience and Opinion
Back to contents.
Would you buy a friend for your child with disability? Isolation lived by disabled people can lean to loneliness and psychological suffering. (In Portuguese, Feb, Sler)
An anti-guideline on accessibility to challenge the silos and specificity disability gets put into. (In Portuguese, Oct, SISEM-SP)
Politics and Elections
Back to contents.
Lula received the presidential sash from representatives of minority groups including Ivan Baron, an anti-ableism influencer, wearing a white suit graffited with slogans. (In Portuguese, Jan, Globo)
A network of People With Disabilities in the PSOL party, São Paulo “We want to get out of invisibility and construct an anti-ableist and inclusive society.” (in Portuguese, Jul, PcDs do PSOL SP)
Resources
Back to contents.
Portraits of Brazil with Disability A new podcast exploring a range of disability issues (in Portuguese, with transcription, Jan)
Sport and Paralympics
Back to contents.
Great pictures of Paraskating (no image description, Feb, @Aurch, Instagram)