These are terrifying images that come at a tragic moment: the death, Thursday evening, November 19, of a black man beaten to death by security agents of a store of the Carrefour group, in Porto Alegre, the day before of the very symbolic Day of the Black Conscience, moved and revolted a large part of Brazil.
In the video, filmed by a witness, Joao Alberto Silveira Freitas, 40, can be seen thrown to the ground and beaten to death by two white security officers at the entrance to the store. We can also hear the shock of the punches thrown in the face, and the cries of distress of a man who is dying. On the orange ground, lit by neon, we can see drops of blood.
According to the police, the victim, who died on the spot, died of asphyxiation, while the agents tried to immobilize him. The two suspects, aged 24 and 30, employees of the Vector company, under contract with Carrefour, were arrested and placed in detention. One of them, a military policeman, worked in store security outside of his working hours.
“It’s an act of racism”
The exact cause that caused the tragedy has not yet been established. This November 19, Mr. Silveira Freitas went to do his shopping at the Carrefour in the Passo d’Areia district, in the north of Porto Alegre, in the company of his wife. Police said an altercation took place between the victim and a supermarket employee. But, for the family of the deceased, the nature of the crime is beyond doubt. “For me, it’s an act of racism”, the victim’s father commented, referring to an assault motivated by “Hatred, fury”.
The drama sparked outrage. And for good reason: it took place in the middle of the municipal countryside, but especially on the eve of Black Conscience Day, celebrating the memory of Zumbi, an insurgent slave and hero of the Afro-Brazilians, who died on November 20, 1695.
In this context, anger is great against the French hypermarket giant Carrefour, accused of racism. The chain has more than 700 points of sale in Brazil, employing 90,000 employees. Demonstrations took place on Friday outside the entrance to several stores in the country. In Sao Paulo, the protesters smashed the windows and invaded one of the group’s signs, before trying to set it on fire, with cries of ” Racist crossroads! “.
Carrefour under fire from critics
Charges rejected by the distribution chain. “It’s a tragedy, we are devastated, horrified. It’s inexcusable, explained to World Stéphane Engelhard, General Secretary of Carrefour in Brazil. We are already doing a lot against racism, through training to raise employee awareness. “ The Porto Alegre store was temporarily closed, its manager at the time of the tragedy removed from his post. Carrefour also announced that it had broken its contract with the security company Vector.
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