Behind the paint on Aílton Krenak's face

indigenous protagonism in the fight for the inclusion of their rights in the 1988 Constitution

Abstract

This article aims to shed light on the process of organization of the Indigenous movement from the 1970s onward, highlighting the protagonism of Indigenous peoples in the articulations that led to the recognition of their rights in the 1988 Brazilian Constitution. To this end, it analyzes the treatment accorded to Indigenous peoples in Brazilian constitutions prior to the 1988 Charter. It then examines the events that fostered the organization of the Indigenous movement in Brazil, with particular attention to Convention No. 107 and the Declaration of Barbados. The article also addresses the mobilization of Indigenous leaders, indigenists, and legislators to ensure that Indigenous voices were heard during the 1987 Constituent Assembly. Finally, it presents the formulation of Indigenous rights enshrined in the Constitution currently in force. The sources for this research include contemporary news reports, as well as studies by anthropologists, historians, and indigenists. These materials were analyzed in light of the theoretical and methodological contributions of the English contextualist tradition, with an emphasis on Quentin Skinner.