IMPRISONMENT AS MAINTENANCE OF STRUCTURAL RACISM IN BRAZIL IN LIGHT OF THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION AS AN ANTIRACIST PRACTICE

Abstract

This article aims to investigate prison as a mechanism that sustains structural racism in Brazil. The research seeks to demonstrate that the study of prisons in Brazil must address racial issues, as race is a determining factor in the punishment of individuals. Beyond race, class is also crucial in the imprisonment of individuals, with the most affected being black and poor bodies. Although criminal law does not create racism, it reflects this racism in laws and penalties, thereby perpetuating structural racism, a concept widely discussed by Silvio Almeida. According to Almeida, overcoming structural racism requires the adoption of antiracist practices. Thus, this research argues that addressing structural racism necessitates an antiracist education. In this context, as a contribution to antiracist practice, the study seeks to contextualize education as a social and fundamental right through the lens of Paulo Freire's pedagogy to extract structuring elements from the perspective of social class. It then establishes a connection between the principles of the 1988 constitutional text and Federal Law No. 10,639/03. The hypothesis is that education, as a right, constitutes an antiracist practice. To this end, the research employs the hypothetico-deductive method, as developed by Karl Popper, along with a review of related literature. Ultimately, it aims to show that education, as a legal object, constitutes an antiracist practice, as it directly influences the structure of racism in Brazil.