At the EEOC’s 60th-anniversary celebration of the Civil Rights Act, Rafaela Moura delivered a presentation spotlighting the unique challenges faced by Brazilian-Latinos in the United States. Moura estimated that in 2024, there were around 2 million Brazilians in the U.S., but highlighted that this population is underrepresented and inaccurately reported in official data.
The presentation emphasized the distinct identity of Brazilian-Latinos, shaped by language, race, and skin tone, setting them apart from other Hispanic groups. Rooted in Latin America's Lusophone colonial history, this identity reflects the region's complex past, marked by the mixing of Indigenous people, White Europeans, Asians, and enslaved Africans.
Rafaela Moura, a senior advisor to the EPA and an environmental and public policy scholar, discussed RFM Productions work on the Brazilian-Latino experience. “It’s crucial for our communities to recognize and support the most vulnerable members—those who require the most research, resources, and representation,” she said.
Drawing parallels between the civil rights movement and her environmental advocacy, Moura highlighted her efforts to uplift marginalized communities, particularly Latin Americans, Indigenous groups, and women. During the conference, she cited a Pew Research study revealing that a U.S. Census Bureau coding error led to the undercounting of Brazilians. EEOC data also showed that Latina women resign from federal jobs at higher rates, further complicating representation and resources for these groups.
Moura addressed the issue of representation in government, noting that the "quintessential Latina in federal government is often light-skinned, possibly from Puerto Rico or Colombia, and likely Democrat." She argued that this narrow prototype obscures marginalized groups like Brazilians, Haitians, Indigenous people, and Afro-Latinos, who are often invisible in official statistics, policy discussions, and political representation.
Moura’s personal experiences also informed her advocacy. Born in Brazil and relocating to Boston at age nine during the largest wave of Brazilians migration to America, she recounted a colleague's biased remarks that reflected the complexities of racial identity in the U.S.
Her presentation called for greater recognition of Brazilian-Latinos and others on the periphery of Latino identity, underscoring the importance of inclusivity and equity in advancing civil rights for all marginalized communities in the 21st century.
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