Debates of the Subcommittee on Blacks, Indigenous Populations, Persons with Disabilities, and Minorities during the National Constituent Assembly of 1987

Abstract

This paper aims to explore the debates surrounding the rights of incarcerated individuals during the 1987 National Constituent Assembly of Brazil, particularly within the Subcommittee on Black People, Indigenous Peoples, Persons with Disabilities, and Minorities. Drawing from two days of discussions, the first assessing the relevance of the agenda to the subcommittee and the second featuring insights from individuals with firsthand experience of prison life, a critical analysis is undertaken to comprehend the strengths and limitations of the arguments presented at that time. Utilizing documentary research from the constituent assembly records and relevant literature, the study is structured into three main sections. The first section presents the subcommittee debates over these two days. The second section focuses on the initial meeting day, highlighting the prison issue as a perpetual concern in Brazilian society, asserting that racism is inherent in the country's penal system, and challenging the myth of racial democracy as a barrier to its acknowledgment. Finally, the concluding chapter discusses recurring "re-" illusions, particularly the rehabilitative ideal addressed on the second day of meetings, identifying its constraints and proposing the concept of social reintegration as a skeptical counterpoint to the punitive functions, while acknowledging its dynamic response to prison life conditions.