Negro Drama. Racism, Segregation and Police Violence on the Outskirts of Lisbon

Abstract

A closer look into police violence in the racialized and peripheral territories in the city of Lisbon (Portugal) shows that what is represented is not merely isolated episodes, but rather a daily process of controlling spaces and the people who inhabit them. In 2015, a case of police brutality against a group of black youth from Cova da Moura received wide social and media coverage whose repercussions opened up a public debate on institutional racism in Portuguese society. Through field-work and statistical analysis, and inquiry into the media and legislation, we aim to examine the relationship between the broader processes of racialization and criminalization of space, police brutality, and institutional racism, thus enhancing the present debate, as necessary as it is silenced, in contemporary Portugal.