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Reaffirming the commitment to implement the International Decade of Afrodescendants, the UN System Brazil launched in the 2017 Black Consciousness Month, the national campaign "Black Lives" (Vidas Negras).
The initiative seeks to broaden - along with society, public executives, the justice system, the private sector and social movements - the visibility of the problem of violence against black youth in the country. The objective is to draw attention and raise awareness of the impacts of racism on the restriction of the citizenship of black people, influencing strategic actors in the production and support of actions to combat discrimination and violence.
In Brazil, seven out of ten people murdered are black. In the 15-29 age group, five lives are lost to violence every two hours. From 2005 to 2015, while the homicide rate per 100,000 inhabitants dropped by 12% for non-blacks, blacks increased by 18.2%. The lethality of black people is increasing and this requires policies focused on overcoming racial inequalities.
According to a survey conducted by the Special Secretariat for Policies on the Promotion of Racial Equality (SEPPIR) and by the Federal Senate, 56% of the Brazilian population agrees with the statement that "the violent death of a black young person shocks society less than the death of a white young person". The data reveals how Brazilians have been indifferent to a problem that should be everyone's problem.
The campaign wants to draw attention to the fact that each loss is a loss to society as a whole. According to data recently released by UNICEF, of every thousand Brazilian adolescents, four will be murdered before reaching the age of 19. If nothing is done, there will be 43,000 Brazilians between the ages of 12 and 18 dead from 2015 to 2021, three times more black than white. Among young people, aged 15 to 29, in the next 23 minutes, a black life will be lost and a future cancelled.
The campaign argues that this death must be avoided and, for this, it is necessary that the State and society commit themselves to the end of racism - a key element in defining the profile of victims of violence.
Brazil is among the 193 countries that have committed to the 2030 sustainable development agenda, with the decision not to leave anyone behind. If racism has left black youth behind, it needs to be faced. "Vidas Negras" is an invitation to all Brazilians to engage in the debate and to promote and support actions against racial violence.
Do not allow racism leave the black youth behind.
We thank our UN Online Volunteer, Juliana Nogueira, for her contribution to the translation of this article. Juliana is an online volunteer mobilised through www.onlinevolunteering.org".