‘It’s not a fight for a minority, it’s for the ego’, says Leo Lins about action as a joke

Defendant in a public civil action filed by the Public Defender’s Office of the State of Sergipe for a joke about deaf people, comedian Leo Lins participated in the last hearing of the case on March 27, 2024 and awaits the publication of the sentence in the coming months.

In the initial petition, the Public Defender’s Office requests the establishment of collective moral damages of R$2 million, the suspension of social networks and even the arrest of Leo Lins, in addition to asking that the comedian be “formally prevented from making or promoting prejudiced jokes ” under penalty of a fine of R$20,000.

In addition to the comedian, his company that produces the shows, a second event producer and the bar where the show was held are mentioned, which took place on April 29, 2022, in Aracaju (SE).

Days before the hearing, Leo Lins published a video on his social networks informing his followers about the progress of the process. In the video, the comedian complains about “abuse of power” by the judiciary and mentions the arrest request made by the Public Defender’s Office.

This Tuesday (2), four days after the hearing, the comedian spoke to the People’s Gazette about the process that has a volume of more than one thousand and one hundred pages.

Among the “evidence” listed against Leo Lins are prints with the comedian’s reactions in the form of jokes to criticisms published on social media by people with hearing impairments who felt offended by the joke made during the Aracaju show.

Among the criticisms, Leo Lins highlighted the statement of one of the witnesses cited in the case, who said that because she had a hearing impairment, she decided to stop following the comedian’s profiles on social media after the joke with the group in which she (the witness) participated. is part.

“In other words, when you make jokes about dwarfs, diabetics, fat people, women, men, then there’s no problem, but when you talk about deaf people, it loses its humor. It’s very curious. It’s the same principle as those who speak: I will defend minorities, but if the person representing the minority doesn’t think like them, then he’s no longer a black person, he’s a captain of the bush. It’s the same thing […] In other words, deep down, you are not fighting for a minority or for any class, you are fighting for your ego. It’s always that. It’s a fight for your ego. At most, you will fight for those who look as similar as possible to you, preferably if they are 100% identical, like you, that is, a replica of you. There it is excellent. You wanted the world populated by you. And that. It’s the generation in which we live in a time of egocentrism,” the comedian told People’s Gazette.

Leo Lins also said that he plans an event to “celebrate” the milestone of 50 censored shows. The milestone will be celebrated in a show scheduled to take place on Friday (5), in São Paulo, at Teatro Gazeta.

“The fiftieth city [que teve o show censurado] it was Santo Antônio de Jesus, close to Salvador. I was going to do the show there, I posted the video with a joke about the city hall, they canceled the show at the Municipal Theater, I had to go find a private space… As always happens, as it often does, unfortunately, it becomes routine,” he said. the comedian at People’s Gazette.

The process

With an impressive volume of more than one thousand and one hundred pages, the action proposed by the Public Defender’s Office of the State of Sergipe displays several criticisms from social media profiles of Leo Lins’ jokes and brings together documentation from other processes in which the comedian is also a defendant for cause of jokes that mention characteristics of members of groups considered “minorities”.

According to lawyers Lucas Giuberti and Marcelo Henriques, who represent the comedian in the case filed by the Sergipe State Public Defender’s Office, the objective in gathering all this documentation would be to “disqualify” the comedian.

“It’s a strategy to disqualify Leo. But it has nothing to do with it. There are other cases, different situations”, Giuberti told People’s Gazette.

When talking about the hearing on March 27, Giuberti said that one of the things highlighted by the defense was the fact that it is necessary to make a distinction between the artist during the presentation of the show and the natural person of Leonardo de Lima Borges Lins, name complete humorist.

“At the hearing they brought the mother of a deaf person and she reported difficulties faced by deaf people in the hospital, in the supermarket, etc. We also understand this, we agree with this, in fact, Leo was supportive and said he was aware of the situation, but that he was not to blame for the problems that should be resolved by the State”, reported the lawyer.

“It’s not the joke itself, but it’s the place where it’s told. From the moment it is told on stage, which is prohibited from being reproduced, it is an environment that is exclusive to that place, the people who consume it there, who buy the ticket, buy it knowing [do conteúdo do show]”, he added.

The lawyer also explained that the procedural investigation phase ended with the hearing on March 27th, and the deadlines for the presentation of memorials are now running, which are statements presented to the Court by all parties to the process before the judge’s final analysis. The deadline for submitting memorials is 45 days.

Optimistic about the outcome of the trial, the lawyer said he did not see the possibility of convicting the comedian.

“Freedom of expression, which is a constitutional right, must be preserved and people must understand that there is a difference between the Leo Lins character and the artist’s physical person in everyday life. An individual is a citizen like any other. He doesn’t offend people on the street, quite the opposite, Leo helps charities… Off stage, Leo is a normal person […] He doesn’t do it stand up on the street, but his work is done on stage”, concluded the lawyer.

Leo Lins defended the right to demonstrate against his show

When surprised by protests at the entrance to the shows in Aracaju-SE and Maceió-AL, in April 2022, the comedian defended the right to demonstrate and shared photos on his social networks alongside the protesters who displayed posters calling for the cancellation of the show.

“Protests are valid. Boycotts, marches, demonstrations… These are democratic acts”, wrote the comedian in a post on Instagram. After talking to the protesters, Leo Lins performed the shows.