Courses on Indigenous rights: an anthropological contribution to the training of magistrates in Brazil

Abstract

In this article I discuss how Brazilian magistrates have begun to approach the realities of Indigenous peoples through experiences in the elaboration and implementation of training courses for judges on the theme of Indigenous rights. These courses are an important step toward a necessary curricular adjustment, with a corresponding impact on how magistrates understand the theme and in collective efforts to develop a plural and multicultural justice. In this context, anthropology assists magistrates in expanding their knowledge of Indigenous societies in Brazil, particularly in what pertains to different peoples’ conceptions of justice, thereby making intelligible the complex realties that typically unfold in inter-ethnic situations.