Ivanir dos Santos has long defended minorities in Brazil. Decades ago, he founded the United Center for Marginalized Populations, a non-governmental organization that advocates for minorities and combats racial discrimination.
But after Ivanir dos Santos was one of the honorees of the 2019 International Religious Freedom Award from the U.S. State Department for his efforts to increase tolerance in Brazil, he saw his work gain new visibility and influence.
Dos Santos is a priest of candomblé, a religion with roots in Africa that arrived in Brazil through enslaved people hundreds of years ago. Candomblé is recognized as a legal religion, but its practitioners have suffered attacks for their beliefs. (Brazil is predominantly Christian. Afro-Brazilian religions, such as candomblé and umbanda, are followed by less than 5% of the population, according to the Pew Research Center.)
The change is a long-term process, said Ivanir dos Santos. He stated that the award gives him the opportunity to establish a more consistent dialogue with different segments of society, which now understand the seriousness of the work he does.
Ending Intolerance
As an intellectual, Dos Santos writes about religious intolerance. He is a co-author of the Guide Against Religious Intolerance and Racism (2008) and contributed to a government report in 2017, titled Religious Intolerance in Brazil.
Ivanir dos Santos advocates for more effective investigations by the Brazilian government regarding attacks perpetrated against minority religions. He said that many victims are still being threatened and need to abandon their places of worship.
In order to combat discrimination, Ivanir dos Santos tirelessly supports inter-religious dialogue. For this reason, he founded the Commission for Combating Religious Intolerance in 2008.
That year, he organized the first Walk in Defense of Religious Freedom in Rio de Janeiro. The annual event attracts up to 50,000 participants from various religions, including Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and Buddhism.
Source: share.america.gov