A questão étnico-racial no Brasil contemporâneo: notas sobre a contribuição da teoria das representações sociais

Abstract

The present essay tries to evidence the participation of social representations in the construction of racism and to discuss their role in the production of otherness and identity. The Brazilian social context has been taken as reference, where the ethnic and racial debate has grown within the last two decades, but in which there is still an incipient presence of consensual academic analysis, as well as a lack of inclusive propositions in public policies that could go beyond quotas or vacancy reserve. By observing this scenario, we clarify that the SRT (Social Representation Theory) is useful in order to make possible the acknowledgement of the different realities which may transit within the same spots, sometimes unequally, and dispute the public spheres. Here we highlight the need for going further in the agenda of coherent pragmatic actions and demands from diverse social segments, by planning short, mid and long term so that the social representations traversed by racism can be put aside, stereotypes can be overcome and new challenges can be put to the identity of black and white people in Brazil.