While in Brazil, the racial theme was a political ally of the governments of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff, the black population is now witnessing a step backwards.
The second largest black community in the world, Brazil is now ruled by an openly racist president.
During his presidential campaign in 2018, Jair Bolsonaro already declared about the descendants of slaves "that they were useless, not even to procreate", yet using the slogan "my color is Brazil".
Faced with the attacks, the black struggle asserts itself in education, politics and even the press.
For the first time in the country's history, the municipal elections in November saw more black than white candidates.
But these advances come up against deep-rooted white domination and relentless racist acts.
On November 19 in particular, the death of a black man, beaten to death by the guards of a Carrefour supermarket in Porto Alegre, sparked a series of demonstrations across the country.
Will 2020 remain synonymous with progress in the fight against racism?
Between Rio de Janeiro, land of arrival of millions of slaves, and São Paulo, the country's economic megalopolis, our reporters investigated the heart of the Brazilian racial struggle, which takes place, in Portuguese, under the slogan "Vidas negras importam "(" black lives matter ").
Or the cry of a people with a deep colonial past.
The summary of the week
France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week
I subscribe
Take international news everywhere with you!
Download the France 24 application
google-play-badge_FR