Brazilians do not recognize themselves as Latin Americans

Because of its size and population, Brazil is by far the largest country in Latin America. However, its inhabitants are those who identify least as Latin Americans in the region, according to the study "The Americas and the world, public opinion and foreign policy".

The results of the survey show that Only 4.2% of Brazilians define themselves as Latin Americans.

Sampling asked in early 2019 to 1,849 Brazilians what identity they felt closest to.

Among them, the 80.6% chose Brazilian; 11.4%, "citizen of the world" and only one 4.2% defined themselves as Latin American, according to the data proposed by the professor of the University of Sao Paulo, Feliciano de Sá Guimaraes.

These figures contrast with those of the other countries badyzed (Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and Peru), where the percentage of people who identified themselves as Latin American was 38% (Chile) up to 59% (Colombia) in the last edition (2015), when Brazil's score was also 4%.

Although the new data from the rest of the countries have not yet been extracted, Ivan Filipe Lopes, a professor at the Sao Paulo ABC University, explained that no significant variation was expected as it was something " structural ".

Lopes felt that the great disparity between Brazil and the rest of the countries was "quite strong, but not surprising": "Brazil has always been the country that identifies least in Latin America"he said.

In order to reverse this genuine feeling of Brazilians, the Brazilian anthropologist Darcy Ribeiro conceived in 1989 the "Memorial of Latin America", a giant complex located in the center of Sao Paulo (Brazil) which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.

With 85,000 square meters (the equivalent of more than 11 football fields), five buildings designed by renowned Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer house specialized archives, exhibitions and shows about Latin American culture.

The objective was always "the integration of Brazil in the region", explains in an interview with Efe the director of the memorial, Jorge Damiao: "Our team gets up, eats and goes home thinking," he said. declared.

As a specialist, researcher Lopes has outlined some of the causes that explain this challenge, such as those related to the geographical factor.

The expert explained that although the South American giant limits with ten other Latin countries, its border areas are practically depopulated, For what they have no impact on the daily lives of Brazilians.

However, the highlight for Lopes is the historical component that emerges from the colonial experience, which has marked the identity of the peoples of the continent in a very different way.

More precisely, that of the Brazilians is marked by the transfer of the Portuguese crown to Rio de Janeiro in 1808, before the declaration of independence of Brazil (1822).

According to the specialist, this fact has installed a capital on the territory that maintained an empire of the European dynasty throughout the nineteenth century, while the rest of the countries in the region fought against Spanish rule for the first time. independence of their republics, which has a sense of unity

"This has created a Brazilian identity, especially among the elites, who have always considered Europe as a model and Latin America as a barbarity", illustrated the specialist.

This seed was followed by a diplomatic history that prioritized the most developed countries, especially the United States, while regional integration processes such as Mercosur were "well below expectations". ", according to Lopes.

This is the scenario that the Latin American Memorial intends to reverse through initiatives such as free Spanish clbades in its Latin American library.

And, as Jorge Damiao explained, language is another major obstacle that hinders cultural exchange.

According to the latest annual report published by the Instituto Cervantes in 2018, it is estimated that only 6.7 million people speak or study Spanish in Brazil, which corresponds to about 3% of the population.

The director stated that this language should be compulsory education in Brazilian schools and criticized the low level of education in the country, so that many of its inhabitants do not know "which countries are part of Latin America"

By Laura López – EFE