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White security guards beat a black man in Brazil after an argument with a supermarket worker. The man dies. The result: furious protests in various cities, some of which escalated into violence.
After the violent death of a black Brazilian, people took to the streets in numerous cities in the country. There were rallies and protests on Friday in São Paulo, Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro. The protesters denounced racism and held up banners reading “Black lives count” and “Racism is a virus.”
According to previous information, the 40-year-old victim was shopping with his wife in a Porte Alegre supermarket when there was a dispute with an employee. Then two guards took the man to a parking lot. The 40-year-old woman lost consciousness from the beatings. The video footage shows one of the guards kneeling over the victim lying on the ground. Obviously, the man’s air supply was cut off. Resuscitation attempts at the scene were unsuccessful. A video of the event quickly spread through online networks and the Brazilian media.
Fire in the supermarket
On Friday there were protests in the supermarkets of the same chain, including in Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia and in front of the Porto Alegre supermarket, where the crime occurred. Here, police used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd, a local television station reported. A fire started in a supermarket in Sao Paulo.
The supermarket operator regretted the incident and promised to support the victim’s family. The chain announced that it would terminate its contract with the security company, suspend the store manager and temporarily close the supermarket. According to the police, one of the suspects was an off-duty military police officer. Both security forces were arrested.
The government rejects the accusations of racism
The act of violence occurred a day before the so-called Black Awareness Day on Friday, which commemorates the contribution of blacks to the culture and identity of Brazil. Yet discrimination against blacks is widespread even in the largest country in Latin America.
Brazil’s far-right head of state Jair Bolsonaro wrote on Twitter, without specifying the fatal attack, that Brazil’s problems were “beyond racial issues.” Rather, the “great evil” of the country is “moral, social and political corruption.” Bolsonaro’s deputy, Hamilton Mourao, said the death of the 40-year-old in Porto Alegre had nothing to do with racism. “For me there is no racism in Brazil,” he said.
