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Further Reading

Brazil - People

With its 190 million inhabitants, Brazil has the largest population in Latin America and ranks fifth in the world. Though proud of its status as a "melting pot" in which different cultures and races exist side-by-side, racism remains a real and largely unacknowledged problem, and Brazil's indigenous population of some 700,000 individuals, scattered across the country in 225 different societies, continues to suffer from prejudice, violence, and marginalization. Organized crime, urban murder rates often ten times those in the most violent U.S. cities, and the second largest consumption of cocaine in the world are in need of urgent attention.

Urban growth has been rapid; by 1984 the urban sector included more than two-thirds of the total population. Increased urbanization has aided economic development but, at the same time, has created serious social and political problems in the major cities. The majority of people live in the south-central area, which includes the industrial cities of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Belo Horizonte. Brazil underwent rapid urban growth; by 2005, 81% of the total population was living in urban areas. This growth aids economic development but also creates serious social, security, environmental, and political problems for major cities. The government is largely absent from the favelas of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and other major cities, whose millions of residents are often caught between criminal gangs and corrupt civil and military (uniformed) police.

In Rio, where violence has become endemic, a gang war in Rocinha, a favela notorious for crime and drugs, culminated with bloodshed and revealed the depth of criminal druglord control over the favelas. The police reacted by launching a highly publicized incursion into Rocinha. In the countryside, the Landless Movement (MST) illegally occupies land, causing confrontations with landowners and the GOB. In April 2004 the MST accelerated its occupations throughout Brazil, worsening an already tense situation in rural areas.

Six major groups make up the Brazilian population: the Portuguese, who colonized Brazil in the 16th century; Africans brought to Brazil as slaves; various other European, Middle Eastern, and Japanese and other Asian immigrant groups who settled in Brazil since the mid-19th century; and indigenous peoples of Tupi and Guarani language stock. Intermarriage between the Portuguese and indigenous people or slaves was common. Although the major European ethnic stock of Brazil was originally Portuguese, subsequent waves of immigration contributed to a diverse ethnic and cultural heritage.

From 1875 until 1960, about 5 million Europeans immigrated to Brazil, settling mainly in the four southern states of Sao Paulo, Parana, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul. Immigrants came mainly from Italy, Germany, Spain, Japan, Poland, and the Middle East. The largest Japanese community outside Japan is in Sao Paulo. Despite class distinctions, national identity is strong. Brazil prides itself on being open to all races but recently began a national conversation on racial equality and entered into a memorandum of understanding with the United States on addressing racial inequality. Indigenous full-blooded Indians, located mainly in the northern and western border regions and in the upper Amazon Basin, make up less than 1% of the population. Their numbers are declining as contact with the outside world and commercial expansion into the interior increase. Brazilian Government programs to establish indigenous reservations and to provide other forms of assistance have existed for years but are controversial.

Brazil is the only Portuguese-speaking nation in the Americas. About three-quarters of all Brazilians belong to the Roman Catholic Church; most others are members of traditional Protestant denominations, members of growing evangelical movements, or follow practices derived from African religions.

As its geography, population size, and ethnic diversity would imply, Brazil's cultural profile and achievements are extensive, vibrant, and constantly changing. Popular culture predominates, with a thriving popular music industry, relatively active cinema, and a highly developed television empire, producing an enormous number of soap operas (telenovelas) that have found a world market. The visual arts, especially painting, are lively, while literature and the theatre, although important, play a less prominent role in this fast-moving, media-oriented society. Traditionally, Brazilian culture has developed around regional subjects, with the country's northeast normally identified with national themes, both nativist and Afro-Brazilian, while the urban centers of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro have demonstrated a tendency toward a more international, and European-oriented expression. With the post-1964 push to a more integrated national culture, these tendencies have diminished somewhat but remain central to understanding the uniqueness of this vast nation.

Crime throughout Brazil (especially Rio de Janeiro) has reached very high levels. The Brazilian police and the Brazilian press report that the rate of crime continues to rise, especially in the major urban centers - though it is also spreading in rural areas. Brazil's murder rate is more than four times higher than that of the United States. Rates for other crimes are similarly high. The majority of crimes are not solved. Street crime remains a problem for visitors and local residents alike, especially in the evenings and late at night. Foreign tourists are often targets of crime and Americans are not exempt. This targeting occurs in all tourist areas but is especially problematic in Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and Recife.