Brazil: Protesters invade supermarket in Sao Paulo city November 20

Event

Protesters gathered on Friday, November 20, at 16:00 (local time) outside the São Paulo Museum of Art on Avenida Paulista, to hold the 17th march for Black Awareness Day (Consciencia Negra). During the protest, demonstrators stormed into a Carrefour supermarket nearby. The protest had started peacefully; however, some protesters started throwing objects and destroying windowpanes on the supermarket's facade on Pamplona Street, one of the city's most affluent areas. Then they invaded the building, broke products, and set fire to the interior of the supermarket. The organizers of the event have requested for participants to end the protest and police have dispersed the crowds.

Activist groups have intensified protests nationwide as they demand justice for João Alberto, a black man who died after being beaten and suffocated to death by security guards in Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul) on Thursday night, November 19. Other demonstrations are also possible in city in the coming days.

A heightened police presence and localized disruptions are likely around protests.

Context

A 40-year-old black man, João Alberto Silveira Freitas, was beaten and killed by two white security guards at a Carrefour chain in Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul) on November 19, on the eve of Black Awareness Day, celebrated on November 20. The incident was filmed by witnesses and widely shared on social media and news across Brazil. The two suspects were arrested.

Advice

Individuals in Sao Paulo and other are advised to monitor developments to the situation, avoid all protests and demonstrations as a precaution, and adhere to all instructions issued by local authorities.