Carrefour will have to pay more than 800 scholarships for black students – 02/15/2023 – Market

The Carrefour group will have to allocate R$ 68 million for the payment of more than 800 scholarships for study and permanence for black people in higher education institutions throughout Brazil, to repair the collective moral damages as a result of the death of João Alberto Silveira de Freitas, a black man who was beaten to death in a chain supermarket, in Porto Alegre, in 2020.

João Alberto was shopping with his wife when he was violently approached by two supermarket security guards. Assaulted with kicks and punches for more than 5 minutes, he was suffocated and couldn’t resist. The beating was recorded on video by a cell phone camera.

The case gained national repercussions, mainly because it took place on the eve of Black Consciousness Day, November 20, and was marked by protests in several cities across the country.

The granting of scholarships is the result of the conduct adjustment term signed between Carrefour, the Federal and Rio Grande do Sul Public Prosecutions Offices and the State and Union Public Defenders.

The regional attorney for Citizens’ Rights in Rio Grande do Sul, Enrico de Freitas, says that the agreement has important legal consequences, such as compensation for moral damages and the company’s accountability for violating human rights.

“That act took place precisely because it was a black person. If it were a white man, he would not be treated that way. And this case is emblematic precisely because it was recognized, and is recognized, that, in that circumstance, there was an act of racial discrimination , which caused death, based on the idea of ​​structural and institutional racism. There is no express act of racism, but it occurred because it was a black person,” said Freitas.

Of the R$68 million, R$20 million goes to undergraduate students, R$30 million to master’s students; R$ 10 million for doctoral students and R$ 8 million for specialization students.

It will be up to the state of Rio Grande do Sul to receive the largest number of scholarships, more than 260, followed by Minas Gerais, with 105, and Rio de Janeiro, with 96.