I hate to come back to my blog after an absence with bad or worrisome news however, here I am with some. I’ve made it no secret on this blog that I am a supporter of leaving the Amazon rainforest and the people within it alone. And after the fairly recent election of a new president in Brazil, who claimed that he was going to fight to undo the things the previous president set in place that were harmful to the indigenous peoples of Brazil, I had hope, however small it was.
But it is not to be. It seems like the Brazilian government is almost identical to ours here in the U.S. The president is pretty much just a figurehead while all the other people around him from the different voting parties pull the strings. That is pretty much what is happening as Brazilian congress (who is overwhelmingly right-wing) is trying to pass a new law that will pretty much strip the environmental ministry of their right to defend and protect the Amazon. It will also strip the laws already in place that offer the Amazon rainforest protections from further destruction and theft of the land. And get this: people from within President Silva’s own party helped vote to pass this through.
If this new law goes into effect, it will most definitely be a genocide of epic proportions as the indigenous peoples who still reside in the rainforest will be evicted for land and economic development, or murdered if they choose to stay and fight for their ancestral land. It’s all so absolutely heartbreaking. There have been many protests, and Brazilian police are responding with violence.
As someone who is not Brazilian nor do I live in Brazil, the most I can do is spread the word and sign petitions. If you would like to fight for the Amazon and help lend your voice (even if only digitally) to speaking out against the trauma constantly being inflicted on the Amazon and the indigenous people who still live there, please look at the petitions that I have linked below and sign your name.
With everything going on all over the world and all the many distractions we have in our society, it is easy to turn a blind eye to things like this. I don’t wish to claim that certain things are more important than others because I know that what is important to one person, won’t be for another. But if you are reading this, I hope you take a moment to truly click through the links I have provided to read up on what is going on with the Amazon and sign the petitions.
Thank you for reading ~
Petitions you can still sign:
Global call for the urgent prevention of genocide of the indigenous peoples of Brazil
https://www.change.org/p/the-global-petition-to-protect-the-amazon (old petition that still needs more signatures)
Bill they are trying to pass (This page is in Portuguese, but please use an online translator so you can understand):
https://www.camara.leg.br/propostas-legislativas/345311
Links to articles:
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/democraciaabierta/brazil-lula-environmental-indigenous-agenda/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/25/brazil-congress-environment-indigenous-ministry-powers
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/31/brazil-law-indigenous-lands-congress