Over 140 civil society organizations, including the Plataforma CIPÓ, have released a letter demanding anti-racist climate and urban policies from the government and private sector. The document will initially be delivered to the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA), following a strategic mobilization agenda at the national level.
Representatives from the black movement, environmentalists, research entities, urban reform organizations, and human rights advocates point out that Brazil is already experiencing social and territorial inequalities linked to global warming.
“We urgently need public policies that include effective adaptation measures to address the impacts of extreme climate events on the lives of populations in cities, forests, and rural areas,” the letter states.
Despite the increasing movement to enhance conditions in favelas and peripheral areas since the early 2000s, the “let them die” policy continues to persist in regions predominantly inhabited by black communities. In this context, the government’s failure to take action against extreme climate events serves as yet another tool in the genocidal policy targeting the black population. This represents a clear case of environmental racism.
