Institutional Racism and the Legal Field: Limits, Expectations and Potentialities of Knowledge Production about Race in Brazilian Universities

This article stems from a larger research project that problematized the implications of the different approaches to anti-racism adopted by state institutions, grassroots social movements, and universities, taking into account the analysis of knowledge production processes about race, racism, and anti-racism. For this study, we analyzed the speeches of seven interviewees - three black law students, two women and one man, and four law professors, one black and three white, from two universities in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2018. Among the topics covered are academic, curricular and epistemological cultures in relation to academic training in law, taking into account studies on ethnic-racial relations (race, racism and anti-racism), legal education and human rights. In this approach, we work with the theoretical perspectives of Achille Mbembe, Ana Flauzina, Pierre Bourdieu, Charles Hamilton, Frantz Fanon, Stokely Carmichael, and Thula Pires. The method involves semi-structured interviews anchored in Teun van Dijk's critical discourse analysis. This approach reveals that the expectations and limitations of studying and aspiring to certain positions depend not only on the course attended by the student, but are also determined by institutional racism and various issues related to racial, economic, cultural and social capital.

Keywords:
Curriculum; Racism; Law; Race; University.