For every ten people killed by the police in Brazil in 2021, at least six are black. In some regions of the country, this number is even higher: of all those killed in Salvador, Bahia, only one person was not black. In Recife, the capital of Pernambuco, all those killed by the police are black or brown – color/race that the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) counts as black.
The data are from the Security Observatories Network, based on information from the security secretariats of the monitored states – Bahia, Ceará, Maranhão, Pernambuco, Piauí, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo -, obtained through the Access to Information Law (LAI) .
In all, 3,290 people were killed, of which 2,154 were black. Another 395 did not have their race informed.
Rio de Janeiro is the state with the greatest difference in percentage points between the black population and black people killed by the police in 2021. While 51.7% of Rio de Janeiro residents are black or brown, the study “Pele Alvo” accounts for 87. 3% of those killed by the police are black, when cases without racial information are excluded.
Bahia, on the other hand, has the highest percentage of black people killed by the police, excluding those not informed: 98%. There, a black or brown person is killed by security agents every 24 hours. Pernambuco has the second highest proportion: 96%, with a black person killed every four days.
In São Paulo, the study highlights the reduction in police lethality after the beginning of the use of cameras on agents’ uniforms. Even so, according to the survey, the dead are still mostly black – 69% -, with an average of one every 72 hours.
“Despite important changes in society in relation to racism, the same cannot be said about the police”, criticizes Pablo Nunes, research coordinator for the Security Observatories network.
Nunes argues that investing in less lethal actions guarantees a reduction in crime for a longer period of time.
“In the history of these seven states analyzed, whenever there was the lowest number of deaths committed by police officers, it was when there was, most of the time, the lowest crime rate, putting to the ground this fallacy that it is necessary to act with violence to dealing with crime”, he argues.
Another problem raised by the Network of Security Observatories is the difficulty in obtaining data on police lethality related to color and race.
In Maranhão, for example, this type of information is not included in the records, while in Ceará, the data is present in 31% of the files. For Nunes, the lack of information makes it difficult to direct public safety policies.
“It’s very complicated to think from a scenario that you don’t know, without knowing who dies the most, under what circumstances, the places and the dynamics”, analyzes Pablo.
THE CNN contacted the public security secretariats of the mentioned states and is waiting for a response.
In a note, the Military Police of the State of Rio de Janeiro reported that there is no racial bias in the corporation’s actions and that actions to combat organized crime are planned based on intelligence information. The institution also stressed that the confrontation is always an initiative of criminals, who “carry out inconsequential armed attacks against the security forces of the State”.
Know the research data
Black population and black people killed by police in 2021, excluding cases without racial information:
- bahia
Black population: 76.3%
Blacks killed by the police: 97.9% - Ceará
Black population: 66.9%
Blacks killed by the police: 92.3% - Maranhao
Black population: 76.2%
Blacks Killed by Police: Not Tracked - Pernambuco
Black population: 61.9%
Blacks killed by the police: 96.2% - Piauí
Black population: 73.4%
Blacks killed by the police: 75.0% - Rio de Janeiro
Black population: 51.7%
Blacks killed by the police: 87.3% - Sao Paulo
Black population: 34.8%
Blacks killed by the police: 68.8%
* Under the supervision of Pauline Almeida
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
