Rio’s Carnival parade makes plea to stop illegal mining in Brazil's Indigenous lands
Carnival dancers in Rio de Janeiro made an urgent plea an end to illegal mining as a tribute to the Indigenous Yanomami people of Brazil.
RIO DE JANEIRO — Carnival dancers took the biggest stage in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday night with their faces painted red in a traditional Indigenous manner, while percussionists had “Miners out” written across the skins of their drums.
It was part of Salgueiro samba school’s tribute to the Yanomami, Brazil’s largest Indigenous group, with its giant floats, costumes and songs based on the group’s ancient culture and traditions.
“My Salgueiro is the arrow for the people of the forest,” the parade participants sang out as they marched through the Sambadrome, delivering their message to more than 70,000 revelers at the Sambadrome and millions watching live on television. “The chance that’s left for us is an Indigenous Brazil.”
The first night of the Carnival parade at the Marques de Sapucai Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro on Monday.Mauro Pimentel / AFP-Getty ImagesPresident Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is under pressure to deliver on promises to eradicate illegal mining, particularly amid a recent backslide in efforts. Sunday’s parade comes as Brazil celebrates one year since Lula declared a public health emergency for the Yanomami people in the Amazon, who are suffering from malnutrition and diseases such as malaria as a consequence of illegal mining.
“Ours is a cry for help from Brazil and the world in general,” said Davi Kopenawa, a Yanomami leader and shaman who advised the samba school on how to remain truthful to his people, and paraded with Salgueiro. “My hope is that the world, upon hearing our call, will put pressure on the Brazilian government to remove all the miners, destroyers of our mother Earth, who are soiling the water and killing fish.”
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