USP received 204 appeals from quota candidates this year – 03/03/2024 – Education

This year alone, USP (University of São Paulo) received 204 appeals from candidates who had their racial self-declaration denied when competing for the 2,067 places reserved for black, mixed-race and indigenous people who studied in public schools.

A Sheet had access to a university document with the list of candidates who appealed after being denied self-declaration. According to the USP rectory, of the 204 appeals, only 51 were granted, that is, the students had their racial affiliation approved.

The university did not say whether the number of requests registered this year is greater than in 2023.

As shown by the Sheetat least two students sued the university this week for losing the places they were approved for after a commission decided that they were not considered mixed race.

A group made up of almost one hundred students who lost their place because their self-declaration was denied is also mobilizing to file a collective action against the university.

In a statement, USP defended the model it adopts for the quota policy and evaluation of candidates. “The design of the policy has revealed its effectiveness, responded to the goals and shown that the agreed criteria are not to be confused with a racial court, but with the effectiveness of a fundamental public policy for Brazil.”

One of the last public universities in the country to adopt racial quotas, USP reserves 50% of undergraduate course places for students who studied in the public network. Of these vacancies, 37.5% are allocated to self-declared PPI candidates (black, mixed race and indigenous).

USP was also one of the last institutions to create a hetero-identification committee. This commission is made up of a group of people who assess the authenticity of the racial self-declaration given by students who enter the university through the quota system.

The analysis is strictly phenotypic, that is, it only considers the candidate’s physical characteristics, such as skin color, hair and the shape of the mouth and nose.

USP established that the first assessment of self-declaration is made only by taking a photograph of the face. If this first analysis is rejected, candidates are invited to a face-to-face or virtual hearing.

This year, USP defined that candidates selected by Provão Paulista and Enem would have their racial self-declaration measured virtually. Those approved by Fuvest, the university’s own entrance exam, have the investigation carried out in person.

The two students suing the university were approved by Provão Paulista and argue that they were harmed by the virtual assessment. The young people’s defense claims that the difference in the process is unconstitutional as it does not guarantee equality to candidates.

As the assessment only takes into account physical aspects, they claim that they were harmed by not having been analyzed in person.

“There is no doubt that the virtual hearing harms the candidate whose self-declaration is not confirmed, as in person the members of the commission have the real possibility of investigating the phenotypic aspects that make him suitable for the vacancy reserved by racial quotas”, argued the lawsuit filed. by one of the students.

Glauco Dalalio do Livramento, 17, was approved in the first call to the Faculty of Law, one of the most traditional and competitive in the country. A former public school student, he declared himself mixed race and competed for the places reserved for racial quotas.

The commission, however, decided that he is not considered mixed race. After analyzing the photograph and a virtual evaluation, the panel issued an opinion stating that “the candidate has light skin, sharp mouth and lips, straight hair, and does not present the set of phenotypic characteristics of a black person.”

Asked why it did not guarantee in-person assessment for all candidates, USP said that “this would require a calendar of hetero-identification boards that is incompatible with the calendar of entrance exams at Enem, São Paulo universities and Provão Paulista”.

He also argued that the online investigation takes place to avoid harm to those who live outside of São Paulo. “We would have many candidates traveling to São Paulo without having registered and without a definitive response from the hetero-identification boards, which would cause harm to the candidates,” he said in a statement.

The university also stated that the different format used to investigate the self-declaration of candidates does not violate the equality of the process. “In virtual versions, the hetero-identification panel takes great care to ensure that phenotypic characteristics are viewed appropriately, asking, for example, that candidates change their body position and look for places with better lighting. Everything to ensure the equality of the hearing”, he said in a note.

What is the analysis like at Unesp and Unicamp?

At the other two state universities in São Paulo, Unesp and Unicamp, the hetero-identification commissions’ investigation process is the same for all candidates regardless of the selection process in which they participated.

At Unesp, a student only has their self-declaration rejected after an in-person analysis.

At Unicamp, since the pandemic, the process for all candidates has been carried out remotely, with photograph analysis and, if necessary, with video assessment.

Heteroidentification boards are a demand of the black movement and recommended by control bodies, such as the Public Ministry, to prevent fraud in the quota policy. Of the three universities in São Paulo, USP was the last to form a commission of this type — and only did so after the Public Defender’s Office filed a lawsuit.

Unesp and Unicamp reported that the commissions caused cases of fraud to decrease in selection processes. In both institutions, around 90% of the candidates evaluated have their self-declaration validated.

A Sheet asked USP about how many candidates had their self-declaration denied last year, but the university did not respond.