By DANIEL AFONSO DA SILVA*
The downfall of Silvio Almeida is much more serious than it seems. It goes far beyond the possible ethical and moral lapses of Silvio Almeida and spreads to entire segments of Brazilian society.
1.
For the sake of prudence, this article should not exist. But, for the sake of decency, it deserves to be made public. And, if it were to be made public, as a message, it could simply contain: “identitarians should get along.” Because, in essence, that is what it is about. But Silvio Almeida’s downfall is much more serious than it seems. It goes far beyond the possible deontological and moral lapses of the now former Minister of Human Rights and Citizenship under President Lula da Silva and spreads to entire segments of Brazilian society.
The core of the problem lies in this empire of elective conveniences, driven by a variability of weights and measures, which has been imposed on the treatment of sensitive issues, in public and private spheres, throughout the country.
No one with the slightest experience in Brasília or public administration in general can imagine that a minister of state could be summarily dismissed without the connivance of government sectors. The accusations can be serious and extremely serious. But the accused must enjoy some immunity in favor of his presumption of innocence. Otherwise, goodbye, rule of law. Welcome to the barbarity and despair of reality. Where everything is very fragile and any south wind, like Minuano, can tear the government itself apart.
All this to say, without any shame, that Silvio Almeida, whether guilty or innocent, was thrown into the sea with impunity. They wanted him far away from Brasília. For the reasons alleged, certainly. But many other unfathomable reasons, certainly.
As observers of various political, ideological and intellectual persuasions have rightly noted, the minister's decline only raises two essential questions: (i) why only now? and (ii) why only Silvio Almeida?
Word has been spreading about the extraordinarily toxic and controversial atmosphere in Brasília under Lula da Silva's third presidency. The government has been made up of a multitude of identity segments that have set the tone for contradictions.
There are, yes, identity-based and veneer leaderships Woke too important and enlightened in the government, in Brasília and in Brazil. But on average, the majority of identitarians on duty are nothing more than careerists, opportunists and cowards feeding on the blood of others.
Remember the discomfort caused by the widespread breach of decorum imposed on President Lula da Silva’s inauguration ceremony on January 1, 2023. Remember the misunderstanding caused by perverted agents from the Ministry of Health. Remember that collaborator from the Ministry of Racial Equality who, in a soccer stadium, exhorted the people of São Paulo to show their complete indecency, incoherence and inappropriateness – and, therefore, their unsuitability for the position.
These and other incidents diverted the government's attention from its essential actions, thus draining energy and time. And leading the entire government to, at the very least, unnecessary embarrassment and wear and tear.
All this due to an environment of relative health. Where suspicion took the place of proof and affirmed an environment controlled by an unstable variable geometry of subjectivities. Where all interactions were galvanizing a state of Russian roulette, sealing and anything goes. A reckless state. Capable of tearing apart, overnight, without mercy or forgiveness, lives and reputations.
Silvio Almeida was one of the protagonists of this atmosphere. An atmosphere that was essentially arriviste and sectarian. Now it is rising up in its claws against its creator. Like Saturn devouring his children. A sad end for Silvio Almeida. Whether guilty or innocent, he was abandoned in broad daylight, beheaded at sunset and ruthlessly thrown into the high seas. Guilty or innocent, honestly, it didn't have to be this way.
2.
Silvio Almeida was one of the greatest promoters of the idea of “structural racism” in Brazil. A consistent idea, backed by some legal and philosophical sophistication. But an idea, and no more than a simple idea. Almost an intuition. Lacking historical and sociological support. And, therefore, far from being a theory or a concept. It is simply an idea. Because any careful observer knows that racism manifests itself in ways that are much more perversely essential and multidimensional than just structural.
In any case, the idea defended by Silvio Almeida gained strength in various segments of the black movements and, subsequently, became the mantra of vast sectors of the intelligentsia Brazilian until it reaches the status of an irrefutable argument within public opinion.
Antonio Risério, a poet, anthropologist and intellectual from Bahia, was one of the first to publicly and openly oppose this idea. Labeling it, beforehand, fragile, controversial, dangerous, simplifying and upstart.
As a result, Antonio Risério was, sincerely, ostracized from public debate. Transformed into a near leper. Made like Lazarus. Without any redemption.
Whether you like it or not, Antonio Risério is, above all, a cultured, enlightened man, educated in several areas and with a deep knowledge of the complexity of racial and racialist issues in the world and in Brazil.
For all this, your The Brazilian utopia and the black movements, from 2007, caused such a sensation. It was received, within the intellectual and political circles linked to the black cause in Brazil, as an immense provocation. Since the subject, as could not be otherwise, remains extremely sensitive and delicate. Especially in a country that lived with slavery until recently. However, Antonio Risério's general message suggested that, in the context of public policies, this subject would need to be stripped of subjectivity and emotionalism in order to, in fact, improve the living conditions of the black and marginalized populations in Brazil.
The book, however, caused some outcry, but it was very marginal and without major consequences.
Time passed. Antonio Risério matured even more in reflection and, in 2020, he returned to the charge with In search of a nation. Another shocking book. Which served as a glove for a moment of tension: 2020. When – besides the pandemic – there was nothing else being talked about other than identity politics in Brazil.
Who knows, the nights of June 2013 may have been the defining moment for the internalization of more robust dimensions of foreign identities in Brazil. In any case, in the years that followed, an undeniable wave of identity took over the entire country.
Thus, when In search of a nation became public, the debate on identity and identity politics continued to rage everywhere. So much so that even the prestigious Brazilian Academy of Letters was moved by the issue and arranged for a speech – read: conference – by Antonio Risério on the subject.
The country was divided and careerism – as never before – took over. Not just in the political sphere, which had committed the outrage of impeachment 2016 and the arrest of President Lula da Silva in 2018. And not only because of the emergence of Olavo-Bolsonarism to power, which inaugurated that kind of cultural McCarthyism in Brazil of “hunting communists”. But because of the empire of suspicion that suddenly took over all levels of all interactions in all public, private and public-private spheres.
Antonio Risério's new book thus served as a warning and denunciation of this state of affairs. It is, therefore, once again a controversial book. But now, assimilated by larger and broader audiences. Provoking a multiplication of inflamed questions. With a certain politically correct leading the discussions and counterpointing Antonio Risério's arguments.
All right. All right. That's how it was.
The following year, in 2021, Antonio Risério brought his beautiful Black ladies of Bahia. It was supposed to be just another erudite book by this nobleman from Bahia, but it ended up becoming a real battleground. The guardians of politically correct were immediately called upon to disqualify and belittle the work and author. As a consequence, Antonio Risério was – now, even more so – included in a certain index da self-righteousness Brazilian. Where no one wanted to listen to him or let him speak.
But it was his article “Black-on-white racism gains strength with identitarianism”, published in Folha de S. Paul, on that ill-fated day of January 16, 2022, which changed the level of tension. Because, in it, Antonio Risério simply gave substance to what the title of the article stated. In other words, he defended and problematized the existence of racism by blacks against whites. Nothing more than a very old discussion – and long since overcome and pacified – of the debate on the subject.
But the upstarts didn't see it that way. They felt almost morally offended. And they reacted.
The next day, the same Folha de S. Paul contained a response article entitled “Is there reverse racism in Brazil?”. Two days after this response article, an Open Letter was written and addressed to the Editorial Office and the Editorial Board of the Folha de S. Paul signed by 186 journalists outraged by the “racist content on the newspaper’s pages” under the argument that “reverse racism”, defended by Antonio Risério, “does not exist”.
In reaction, the following day, nearly 200 artists, psychologists, economists and historians signed an “Open letter in support of Antonio Risério and opposition to identitarianism”.
There you have it: the diatribe was thus established and nationalized. Antonio Risério had touched on the most sensitive point of the new mentality of the status quo. And, despite having recognized slavery as a “morally repugnant institution”, he emphasized that racism has always been “universal and not unilateral”. And, more than that, he directly condemned the idea of “structural racism” which, in his assessment, was nothing more than a “legal-ideological trickery”. Which led entire sections of the intelligentsia Brazilian society is losing its ground. Even more so because the idea of “structural racism” seemed to serve as an alibi for its supposed deconstruction. This is the reason for their immediate and aggressive reaction to Antonio Risério.
3.
But it is also worth remembering that, two years earlier, in 2020, a 40-year-old black man named João Alberto Silveira Freitas had been beaten to death by security guards at a supermarket in Porto Alegre and, with his martyrdom, ended up internalizing in Brazil the so-called “George Floyd syndrome” – in reference to the black, American man murdered, in broad daylight, by police officers, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in May 2020.
And it was precisely in this context that Silvio Almeida was removed from his discreet and semi-anonymous status as a professor, researcher and compliant lawyer to the pedestal of champion of the black cause through his idea of “structural racism”.
On one hand, we were experiencing the agony of the pandemic, where the death toll of black people was prominent. And, on the other hand, we were experiencing the malaise of the presidency of Jair Messias Bolsonaro. Who, frankly, was not the most balanced person to deal with that monumental tragedy. In that interim, therefore, it was in that context that Silvio Almeida and his idea of “structural racism” rose and established themselves firmly on the national scene.
Time passed. Silvio Almeida expanded his reach in the public debate. He became well-known. He asserted his idea in the marketplace of ideas. Until Antonio Risério's article came out in January 2022: “Black racism against whites gains strength with identity politics”. Strictly speaking, it was not against Silvio Almeida. But it was understood as if it were.
As a result, given the context, Antonio Risério was labeled as a proselytizing guarantor of Olavo-Bolsonarism, while Silvio Almeida was positively incorporated into the opposition fronts to the presidency of Jair Messias Bolsonaro and everything it represented. So much so that, months later, when the October polls confirmed the defeat of President Bolsonaro and the return of President Lula da Silva, Silvio Almeida's name was one of the first to receive political pressure to join the new government. It was not yet known where or how. But his participation in the new government, from that moment on, was already considered something clear and certain.
Anyone who has any doubts need only calmly return to the news after October 30, 2022 to notice the impressive and unusual reverence with which Silvio Almeida was treated by public opinion in general. Frankly, the same public opinion that silenced Antonio Risério galvanized a safe passageway for Silvio Almeida's access to the ministry in Brasília.
And it worked. He went.
And it was for one of the most relevant ministries on the esplanade – especially after the momentum politically incorrectness of Jair Bolsonaro's presidency.
Once a minister, Silvio Almeida established himself as a person credible, with the technical competence to deal with the dossiers and the political competence to accommodate dissent. Even so, from the beginning, there was something strange in the air. There was a certain uneasiness in all his movements. Something was missing to harmonize. He seemed, sincerely, uncomfortable in the position. Perhaps because he had been overinflated. Or, who knows, because he was more accustomed to being a stone than a window.
Natural: his first year in Brasília was his period of adaptation. Where everything was acceptable to all parties. From his latent irritation to his outbursts of pride.
The presidency's hesitations on the Russian-Ukrainian situation and the Israeli-Palestinian tragedy have, however, put him in a corner. In both contexts, his portfolio should have been directly mobilized, but it was not.
Then came Brazil's incorporation into South Africa's complaint against Israel at the International Court of Justice. An incorporation that was understandable, but complex, both in content and in form. The issue was – and continues to be – extremely sensitive. There were – and continue to be – blatant violations of human rights on both sides. Therefore, a broad and respectful public debate, led by the government and, more directly, by the ministry headed by Silvio Almeida, was imperative. But it did not happen.
Then the unrest surrounding the sixtieth anniversary of March 31, 1964, became public knowledge. Minister Silvio Almeida had organized a program and President Lula da Silva overruled him. This did not go down well and was not well digested by any of the parties – president, minister, military personnel and society. But, in addition, it reported, on the one hand, animosity. And, on the other, obvious serious failures in communication, management and organization.
4.
Even so, everything seemed to be going well. Especially in the interaction between the president and the minister. There is no doubt that they got along well. Their relationship flowed. They seemed to understand each other with a look. They admired each other in silence. They had a real fine connection. And, who knows, maybe even affection. body language of one and the other, when together, denoted. So that no one could imagine that the noble minister could be so mercilessly abandoned as he was.
And, much worse than being abandoned, in less than 48 hours he was beheaded and thrown into the sea, causing astonishment and apprehension to everyone.
It is not up to anyone, for now, to delve into the merits of the allegations against the minister, nor to assess their seriousness. There are competent investigations underway on this subject that, sooner or later, will present a verdict.
What remains to be done now is to calmly observe the movements of this curious decapitation process and meditate with some impartiality on its developments. No one doubts the seriousness of this event for the government. But its consequences could go much further.
It all began and accelerated on Wednesday, September 04th. As soon as some disconcerting insinuations about the deviant nature of some of Minister Silvio Almeida's behavior were made public, the minister came out in self-defense. He vehemently repudiated the insinuations. And he himself, as minister, requested investigations.
The next day, Thursday, dawned gray in Brasília. A deathly silence seemed to hang over everything. The embarrassment was endless. But nothing was set in stone. There was still no coffin or funeral. Until other, increasingly serious, accusations began to appear. Closing the weather completely. And forcing a perfect storm. In which Silvio Almeida was progressively losing his means of defense.
It looked like a Blitzkrieg. Pressure was mounting from many quarters. The minister was already isolated. No one wanted to be photographed with him, much less take sides in his favor. And, if that were not enough, at the end of the day, the First Lady made the bad omen worse by posting a subliminal message on her social media that made it very clear that Silvio Almeida's coffin had already been ordered. It was only a matter of time.
For all these reasons, the change from Thursday to Friday caused insomnia. Some were salivating for the immediate dismissal of the minister. Others still believed in a turnaround. Hope is always the last to die. And, in this case, it seemed to resist dying. Especially because on Thursday night some skepticism began to hang in the air. The accusations of Wednesday and Thursday were recognized as serious and very serious, but, at the same time, a generalized conviction emerged that all of this could also be nothing more than a palace quarrel.
Especially when it was discovered that the ill-feeling between inter-ministerial agents and Silvio Almeida was long-standing and went beyond his possible moral and deontological deviations. Silvio Almeida was – like many ministers – made persona non grata. For some reason, his former companions had now changed their opinion of him. And so they demanded his head. This was typical of a palace quarrel. Which is always complex and delicate. But it is more common than one might imagine. And, almost always, it can be resolved. Depending on the understanding of the owner of the Palace, in this case, the president.
For all these reasons, at the turn of Thursday into Friday, Silvio Almeida was bleeding in the corner, but there was some hope for a turnaround. The milk had not yet been spilled. The First Lady's signal was not yet the coup de grace. That only began to take hold on the morning of Friday, September 06, when President Lula da Silva clearly stated his alignment with the First Lady's position. After that, there was nothing more to be done. The minister's fate was already sealed. A gigantic gallows was being installed. The executioner was already in place. All that was missing was the victim for the execution.
And so came the sad end of Silvio Almeida. It was like that. Painful and sad like that.
But, at the same time, much more serious than one might imagine.
Otherwise, note well.
On Wednesday, September 04th, the news indicated that suspicions about Sílvio Almeida's deviant behavior had been common knowledge in Planalto since the middle of last year. On Thursday, September 09th, they began to go back in time, indicating that his possible violations of conduct date back ten or fifteen years. On Friday, September 05th, given the delay in the executioner's action, the Folha de S. Paul printed on headline the protest of a teacher from Greater São Paulo who said “He put his hand on my private parts”. Hours later, the presidency of the Republic reported that the “accusations are serious” and, as a result, that the minister’s “maintenance” in office was “unsustainable”.
In any case, it should be noted that: (a) If the information released on Wednesday is consistent, it remains to be seen why it took almost a year or more to confront the situation in order to make a decision. (b) If the information released on Thursday is consistent, it is more than evident that there was an extraordinary mistake in the recruitment and selection process of Silvio Almeida to (i) be one of the great champions of the cause of black people in Brazil from 2020 onwards and (ii) to be elevated to the position of minister two years later. (c) If the information released on Friday – and notably the public complaints made by the teacher from Greater São Paulo – is consistent, then everything and everyone is lost: Silvio Almeida and President Lula da Silva at the front and all of their supporters right behind.
With all due respect, no one becomes a Celso Pitta overnight.
In other words, no minister – just because he is a minister – has his “unsustainable maintenance” so instantaneously. Even the most unworthy persona non grata rarely receives such ignoble treatment.
For all these reasons, the matter is not over and will take a long time to be resolved. Throughout Thursday, September 05th, the possibility of the minister's removal from office was raised. Thus, despite the seriousness of the allegations, he, as a suspended minister, would continue to be protected by some presumption of innocence.
In the meantime, it was also suggested, under the principle of proportionality, that her main accuser, the Minister of Racial Equality, be removed from office. But the First Lady's move simply dismissed this hypothesis.
After the president's statement on Friday morning, people still believed that the two ministers would be removed or dismissed. However, as the day went on, it became clear that only one would be removed.
Silvio Almeida was beheaded. Guilty or innocent, we still don't know. We know it was sad. A sad end, for now, for Silvio Almeida. But clearly, also, perhaps, a beginning: the beginning of the end of an era of identitarians and careerists in power.
*Daniel Afonso da Silva Professor of History at the Federal University of Grande Dourados. author of Far beyond Blue Eyes and other writings on contemporary international relations (APGIQ). [https://amzn.to/3ZJcVdk]
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