Lula da Silva - Another Irrational Caudillo

Some time ago, I overheard two co-workers talking; they adamantly agreed Brazil is not a racist nation. Both are Americans, one is a black lady and the other is a naturalized citizen from Brazil. I have known both for years and have the utmost respect for both in matters of personal integrity. But in matters of politics, I am afraid we don't always see eye to eye. So I just listened.

Let's fast forward and consider this news item:

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Thursday blamed the global economic crisis on “white people with blue eyes” and said it was wrong that black and indigenous people should pay for white people’s mistakes.

Speaking in Brasília at a joint press conference with Gordon Brown, the UK prime minister, Mr Lula da Silva told reporters: “This crisis was caused by the irrational behaviour of white people with blue eyes, who before the crisis appeared to know everything and now demonstrate that they know nothing.”

He added: “I do not know any black or indigenous bankers so I can only say [it is wrong] that this part of mankind which is victimised more than any other should pay for the crisis.”

I don’t know about you, but that statement sure sounds racist to me.

I realize there are many on the American left who firmly believe that racism only works from one direction. I have heard and read statements to the effect that blacks, browns, and Asians cannot be racist towards whites; only white people owned slaves (and other such nonsensical garbage). It is a historical fact that white people were enslaved in far larger numbers than black people and that many slave owners were Islamic blacks. The fact is that everyone, regardless of skin color, is capable of the most outrageous racism. Brazil’s president ranks among these numbers. However, in his moment of utter stupidity, he seems to have overlooked one or two things.

First and foremost, he is incorrect. His statement is dead wrong and one only needs to look at a list compiled by Time Magazine to see whom most people are blaming for this current economic mess. Here are my thoughts about that list, in brief:

· Wen Jiabao made the list, he is Chinese.

· Bankers Stan O'Neal and Franklin Raines are both black.

· Angelo Mozilo is of Italian descent, no blue eyes there. Some members of the elite group now known as the "Friends of Angelo" may have them, but I doubt all do.

Many of the others on the list are white; but I would be willing to bet many have hazel eyes.

American consumers made the list, but we know that they are not exactly a monolithic racial demographic, certainly not all of Aryan descent. So knowing what we now know, it is plainly obvious that President Lula da Silva is an idiot along the lines of Barney Frank, Chris Dodd, and Joe Biden, who more than anything in the world prefer listening to the sound of their own voices.

My point is, there are people who are given to making hasty generalizations at the drop of a hat. We have all heard and seen them. This is either because they think the people are too stupid to notice them or because they, themselves, are too stupid to understand how onerous they really are. Such talk, as it applies to race, is the sort of thing that increases (and even causes) racial tensions, but perhaps that is the entire purpose of such idiocy. (SEE: Jackson and Sharpton)

In spite of the man being dead wrong, there are some other considerations involving Lula da Silva and his peculiar brand of stupidity. Let's evaluate at a few pertinent facts about Brazil, the non-racist country, shall we? According to Reuters News Service:

The government of Rio de Janeiro is building concrete walls to prevent sprawling slums from spreading farther into the picturesque hills of this world-famous tourist destination, an official said on Saturday.

Construction has begun in two favelas, or shantytowns, in the southern districts of Rio de Janeiro, a government spokeswoman told Reuters. One of the two is Morro Dona Marta, which police occupied in November to control crime and violence caused mostly by rival drug gangs.

Officials say the wall is to protect the remaining native forest but critics fear the move could be seen as discriminatory and become a blemish symbolizing Brazil's deep divisions between rich and poor.

There is no way around the fact that residents of these slums are overwhelmingly black and poor. In fact, the standard of living among blacks in Rio is far lower than in LA or NY.

Stephen Buckley, writing for the Washington Post in 2000 told us:

No one today writes about Brazil being a racial democracy," said Livio Sansone, director of the Center of Afro-Asian Studies in Rio de Janeiro. "Today, people will tell you that there is racism in Brazil, which wasn't the case 20 years ago. They think a racial democracy is a nice thing to work toward, or dream of, but no one would say that's the way things are today."

Black activists say they are frustrated that Brazilians still do not believe they could be racist. In the poll by the marginalized populations center, 87 percent of respondents said they themselves were not racist, even while large majorities saw racism as a societal problem.

"So we're fighting an invisible enemy," said Ivanir dos Santos, the center's executive secretary.

In the latest, and arguably most dramatic, evidence of the importance of race in daily life, a report by the respected Institute for Religious Studies found that police in Rio de Janeiro's slums kill nine out of every 10 black suspects they shoot--nearly double the ratio of white suspects.

That comes as no surprise to people such as Ivanilde dos Santos. Nearly two years ago, police in the Rio de Janeiro shantytown of Babilonia shot her son, Wallace de Almeida, in the back as he entered dos Santos's yard.

Witnesses said the police, who had accused the slim, dark-skinned 18-year-old of dealing drugs, initially refused to call an ambulance. They called only after learning that he was a soldier. Their allegations against him ultimately were proved baseless.

"They were just used to shooting people up here and getting away with it," said dos Santos, 41. "He died because he was black."

Babilonia is one of dozens of crumbling hillside shantytowns in Rio. Nationwide these communities tend to be majority black--and they have come to symbolize the persistent economic gap between the races.

Apparently, the situation hasn’t substantially changed in the past nine years.

Now that we have a factual understanding about social conditions in Brazil, it does not take a Rhodes Scholar to understand that Lula da Silva is typical of most Latin American caudillos. He apparently aligned himself with such nitwits as Hugo Chavez, because he believes doing so is in his best interests. Perhaps it is, in this case.

But we should note that it is a popular strategy to shift blame to other people in order to divert attention from oneself. A reasonable person might conclude that President da Silva could achieve greatness within Brazil by fixing the rampant problems that stifle his economy, and which deny hope to generations of the poor. If he chooses not to do that, fine – but the downturn in financial markets is simply not a racial issue.

My guess is that he knows he is unable to do anything about the problems of his own nation and it's government. And as a result of this ineptitude, the only way to deflect criticism of that inability is to fashion his model of governance, from the example laid out by the Congress and current President of the United States. They are both well adept at pointing fingers, without considering how many are point back at them.