Note from BW of Brazil: Disgusting! Absurd! Disrespectful! I’m sure there are plenty of other things that will come to mind after you read this story. Some readers come to this site and make comments asking why we continue to share these sorts of reports with the world. In their view, our little site would be “dirtying up Brazil’s image outside of the country.” So how do I respond to that? Well, it’s actually quite simple. 1) Even as people continue to live in denial in terms of how race and racism plays itself out in social relations, everyday we see different examples of how racial stereotypes continue to dictate the maintenance of the racial hierarchy. 2) If these things didn’t exist/happen, we wouldn’t be able to report on them!
The point here is, in numerous thought-provoking posts, many personal reflections of black Brazilian women, we see how many of these women are fed up with the hyper-sexual stereotypes that Brazilian society continues to associate with blackness. When beliefs in these stereotypes manifest themselves again and again, there is simply no use in trying to deny an almost automatic association between black women and sexuality in the minds of everyday Brazilians.
I mean, how many more examples do you need?
Just yesterday, we reported an incident in which a man at a mostly white country club accused a married black woman of “rubbing up against” many of the club’s male membership. In 2013, we saw a cartoon depiction of a black woman basically being a baby making factory. In 2011, we had the infamous racist Devassa beer advertisement in which the text and the photo played on well-known stereotypes of black female sexuality. Then we had the controversial television series Sexo e as Negas that was discontinued after endless protests of Afro-Brazilian women. Or how about Congressman Jair Bolsonaro’s comment associating singer Preta Gil with promiscuity? We won’t even speak on Carnaval season and the ‘indecent proposals’ that many black women surely receive from excited fans.
With such a long history linking black women to hyper-sexuality, today’s story is perhaps not even so shocking. What caught my attention was the fact that the mayor of the country’s second largest and perhaps most famous city was caught on camera unabashedly making such outlandish comments! I mean, if the mayor thinks this way, what does this say about the population as a whole? One other point to bring to the fore here is the fact that the article in the original Portuguese never once mentioned that the woman who was the recipient of such remarks by the mayor is black. One could say it is obvious because the woman appears in the video but it also speaks to the media’s refusal to point out subtle but often blatant examples of the racial imagery that is alive and well in the Brazilian consciousness!
In latest gaffe, Paes suggests that black woman will ‘f*ck a lot’ in new apartment
By Caio Barreto Briso
A 54 second video circulating on the Internet on Friday shows Rio de Janeiro mayor Eduardo Paes making sexually oriented jokes with a woman who had just won an apartment from the City. “Oh my God, it’s me!”, exclaims Rita, receiving the key from the mayor. They enter the house and when they are in the room, Paes tells her, “You’ll do a lot of fucking in this little room.” Then asks if the woman is married. And adds: “You’ll bring a lot of boyfriends over here.” Also in the apartment, he insists, “Rita will have great sex here.”
Already outside, Paes shouts to the crowd of neighbors of the winner’s house, that attended the ceremony: “She said she will do a lot of canguru perneta (sex position of kangaroos) here. She’s liberated, huh. The password first,” says the mayor. At this time, the woman walks away, saying she will lock the front door. As if he understood the gravity of his behavior, Paes says to the cameraman: “Cut, huh.”
The date of the images and the occasion in which they were recorded are uncertain. Less than 24 hours after surfacing, the video had been viewed about 1 million times, with almost 5,000 shares on Facebook. First posting video, psychologist Fernanda Menezes wrote: “The mayor of Rio, Eduardo Paes, showing what he thinks of a poor black woman. Exposing what he supposed would be her sex life in a mocking and debauchery tone. Impossible (to be) more sexist and racist.”
Reactions on the internet were anger. “This Eduardo Insane Paes has no limit,” said one user. “Is he doing drugs?” asks another. “Disgusting”, says only a third.
The candidate for the succession of Paes, Pedro Paulo watched the scene from start to finish, laughing every time his ally opened his mouth. Sought via his representatives, the mayor didn’t wish to respond.
Source: Jornal Floripa
WOW! I am at a complete loss for words after watching this bullsh*t (and that NEVER happens to me!)!! I cannot believe how much he belabored the point of her sex life so loudly in front of all those people! Also, it almost seems like he is trying to proposition when he goes on to ask if she is married – like he expects to come over later when the cameras are gone. The woman is clearly uncomfortable with him treating her like she owes him a f*ck and I am happy that she is at least able to salvage at least a LITTLE self respect in saying she is going to closer her door. Just….WOW…:-( Again, kudos to Black Brazilians for not allowing this *sshole to slide past this, and putting is cornbread *ss on social media!
Supposedly he wants to run for higher office, so I pray Brazilians, especially Afrobrazilian Cariocas and others across the state and country, do not let him get away with this!
I can’t believe it. Is this 2016? We have seen lots of cases of contempt towards Blacks in Brazil through BW of B but nothing has prepared us for this. Crazy!
I’m a little surprised but not at all shocked. We see so many examples of this sort of thing in social networks.
Absolutely disgusting! And to think that Paes supposedly wants to run for higher office–the Governorship of Rio State, the Presidency of Brazil?–after he returns from his year of sabbatical in the USA? I pray Brazilians do not let him off the hook and forget these hateful, humiliating comments.
(Congratulations to the woman who won the apartment, though I wish readily available, affordable housing existed for her and other working-class and poor Brazilians, just as I wish far more of it existed for working-class and poor Americans.)
Given his track record in terms of prioritizing infrastructure development in Rio’s wealthier areas, his support for bulldozing favelas and displacing residents, as happened in Vila Autódromo and the quilombo site where the Media Village was built, and given that he’s making casual comments like this, he should be disqualified from leading a state and country that are a majority Afro-Brazilian!
I agree, but I think, as a whole, most of the white elites probably harbor these sorts of sentiments.
how much u wanna bet mr potty mouth mayor may try to sneak back over to her apt. for what he considers his,he aint foolin nobody!
On Sun, Aug 28, 2016 at 10:59 PM, Black Women of Brazil wrote:
> gatasnegrasbrasileiras posted: ” Note from BW of Brazil: Disgusting! > Absurd! Disrespectful! I’m sure there are plenty of other things that will > come to mind after you read this story. Some readers come to this site and > make comments asking why we continue to share these sorts of reports” >
This is exactly the impression that I got because he asks her in a low down kind of way “are you married?” and then he has his arm thrown over her shoulder like it’s his woman (which she swipes away at the end, right before she says she’s gonna close her door)! It is just ridiculous!
Thank you for letting Black Americans like me know about that nasty S.O.B. He needs to be voted out of office!
But we learnt elsewhere that Blacks don’t vote for Blacks in Brazil. Putting him out may not mean a better alternative. Can the FrenteFavelaBasil really take on the role of a sort of NAACP which can put pressure on other parties, if it doesn’t succeed on its own as a black political party?
” Blacks don’t vote for Black’s in Brazil “.
What a nauseating thought and sadly that joker is married.I could only imagine how his wife is feeling, but like most wives of political officers, they’ll stand by their men until they can’t take it anymore.
I’m sorry about some of Black voters of Brazil. I hate that .For sure ..a NAACP – like organization there and like you said ,to put pressure on them until it make them sick.I also think blogs and social media tools are very helpful in getting the word about people like the Mayor. Wow.. I’m like he was mighty bold in being that disgusting.
The scary thing about Black people not voting for other Black politicians..especially those for their welfare is that they’re giving away themselves.. their powers to people who could care less about their needs and desires. They’ve been brainwashed into thinking that they can’t do any better.
The BWOB blog should be commended. The world should learn the racial realities if Brazil and the world. Too many non- Brazilians like me, feel in love with the myth of the multiculturalism of the country until I read books about it and this blog.
No words. Just sick. He’s the Mayor.