An ex-volleyball player who by chance fell into acting after having studied journalism in college. As a volleyball player, she participated in the Olympics in the Los Angeles, California, in 1984 and Seoul in 1988, as a part of the Brazilian women’s national team. In college, as a student of journalism, she made various reports and documentaries and caught the attention of Brazil’s top TV network, Globo, when she went there to do research for a documentary. From there she appeared in various soap operas and became the host for the sports journal, “Esporte Espetacular”.
Her selection for a role in the soap opera “Viver a Vida” represented a lot to her because there are so few roles of highlight for Afro-Brazilian actors even though they make up half of the country’s population. In speaking of the overwhelming whiteness one sees in Brazilian media, Lica said: “We always saw a kinda Germanic thing and it was complicated in regards to a question of identity, self-esteem. I knew that one day that would happen and I am happy to participate in this process of transition”, speaking of a higher level of visibility for Afro-Brazilians in the media.
Although she says she has never been a victim of racism, she confesses that she has perceived certain looks because her being black. She supports the implementation of quotas in Brazilian universities, a controversial mechanism to increase the numbers of Afro-Brazilians on campuses.
In her view, the system of quotas “is not ideal, but at this time Brazil needs to give space to all people.”
In her view, the system of quotas “is not ideal, but at this time Brazil needs to give space to all people.”
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