Brazilians and Ethnicity: POC or White?
there’s this post from another brazilian girl who says basically the same, but I wanted to give my opinion.
We’re latinos even when we don’t use that word a lot here to describe our people (and north americans usually don’t get why mostly of us don’t say “we’re latinos”), but that fact don’t make all brazilian people be POCs. For an example,Camila Mendes is overused for characters non-white, but I have big breaking news: she’s white. I’ve made one research and even having parents from Brazil, she has portuguese and italian background (people think there’s another one, but while we don’t know we say only white for her). And we can’t deny, she really has italian features. “But she’s tan” Ariana Grande is tan too and completely white (and with italian background too).
Talking about myself: I’m brazilian, but my ethnicity is: portuguese, spanish, unknown black, italian and with high probability of being ashkenazi jew or native too, that part I have to do a DNA exam to confirm. I am mixed, but I don’t consider myself POC or use the brazilian government benefits for pocs (native and black) because my skin tone is olive almost white, i’m mostly white. I have scholarship given by the federal government program called ProUni, but only cause I have no financial condition to pay for my college, i didn’t used my father or my maternal grandfather as an argument to stole the scholarship from a truly people of color, i’ve got it totally legally based on my financial conditions.
Where I want to get: it’s hard to cast brazilians accordingly because of our big diversity given by our past, but brazilian is a nationality, you can be full or half brazilian if you’re born or not here, but you’re not a poc for it. I’m full brazilian, i’ve BORN here, but i am mixed race. Don’t cast white brazilian people as poc characters (like Chay Suede, with most probably white ethnic background, as your poc guy), you’re unconsciously whitewashing them.
If you did that before reading this, all is forgiven. You didn’t knew it and is really confusing most time, myself as brazilian already used a white brazilian actress as poc only because she’s from here, but I learned. I can give you a list of PoC brazilians, just ask for it.
And, I know that our tv channels are unconscious about ethnicities and really disrespectful on their soap operas, but I ask for forgiveness, they’re starting to learn.
Hope this can help u!
