It is commonplace in Brazil for people or institutions to make a symbolic gesture towards an Indigenous community, and then frame it as a major advance for their rights.
One familiar example, for instance, is a museum paying Indigenous people to build a traditional structure of theirs on its site. Or, a person showing up at an Indigenous settlement and saying hello, taking school kids to visit, or buying jewellery from communities – as if any of these things were a major political statement. They’re not. They’re basic decency, like paying for goods and services, or treating someone else as a human being.
Instead of seeking applause for everyday actions, perhaps a more effective way of bringing about change would be to focus energy elsewhere. Indigenous people have their own way of life, and they have persevered for centuries as a result of their own efforts, not ours.
