Samba Schools Call For End of Religious Abuse During Rio Carnival

Rio de Janeiro's parade grounds became a platform for advocacy when the Grande Rio Samba school unfurled a massive fan-shaped banner reading "RESPECT MY AXÉ" to the roaring crowd. AXÉ is an important cosmic figure in the Afro-Brazilian religion Candomblé.

Grande Rio Samba School called upon tens of thousands of viewers in the Sambadrome's bleachers and at home to accept people of Afro-Brazilian faith amid waves of harassment linked to the spread of evangelical Christianity.

The Afro-Brazilian religion was developed after Portuguese Catholic colonists brought African slaves to Brazil. The enslaved men and women developed blends of their religions with Catholicism, which is now being observed by the minority of Brazilians.

Rio is home to one-quarter of followers of the Afro-Brazilian religion. The state has seen a proliferation of evangelical Christianity, particularly neo-Pentecostal churches that focus on spreading their faith among non-believers. A surge of intolerance against traditional African-influenced religions has accompanied the spread of the neo-Pentecostal faith. These ranged from verbal abuse and discrimination to destruction of temples and forced expulsion from neighborhoods.

Members of the Grande Rio school said Rio's traditional Samba school competition is a great platform to raise awareness and tell the world to know that traditional African-influenced religions need respect and protection.

"We want to be respected, and Carnival is about that," said Jaciel Henrique, a member of the Grande Rio school.

Duque de Caxias is the place where Rio inaugurated a center for victims of religious intolerance to file claims and get legal, social and psychological support on February 17.

Within four days of the inauguration, a teenage boy of Candomblé faith reported that school directors stopped him from attending class in his traditional white garb.

The creation of Rio's samba schools is directly tied to the Afro-Brazilian religions. Samba lyrics during Carnival often cite Candomblé deities and have been constant since the 1960s.

Grande Rio school is the first to display a theme that highlights the issue of religious intolerance, said Luiz Antonio Simas, a prominent Carnival historian.

The school presented the story of a Candomblé priest from northeastern Brazil's Bahia state Joãozinho da Gomeia who moved to Duque de Caxias in 1947. Gomeia was thrown behind bars for practicing folk healing.

Another samba school showcased religious intolerance at times during its parade on Sunday. Mangueira used samba lyrics that said "prophets of intolerance" were again putting nails through Jesus' body.

An inter-faith group of 20 religious leaders joined Mangueira is raising a banner that read "Independent of your faith, respect should prevail."

According to Brazil's most recent census, about 0.3% of the population, or over 600,000 people, are said to be practitioners of Afro-Brazilian faiths.

The state government's superintendent for promoting religious freedom Marcio de Jagun said neo-Pentecostal churches often demonize Afro-Brazilian religions.

In rare instances, evangelical pastors were found to be explicitly directing radicalized evangelicals to use violence.

Police arrested a group of drug traffickers who said they were following orders from a pastor known as "Big Fish" last August after terrorizing and trashing Afro-Brazilian groups and temples.

Since 2017, Rio has worked to implement public policies to tamp down religious strife. A council, whose members come from 21 denominations, was created to defend religious freedom.

A 70-year-old Georgina da Silva who paraded with Grande Rio was raised with Candomblé in Duque de Caxias. Her grandchildren reside in the same place. She praised her samba school for tackling an important issue, saying, "We gave our message without offending, without hurting anyone. All we did was give our message. Now let's wait to see what people think."