Homeless People, Race, and the Harms of Slavery: Racialization as a Mechanism for Confronting Structural Racism

Resumen

The National Observatory of Public Policies for People Experiencing Homelessness presented figures for this population in Brazil and its regions, based on data from the Unified Registry for Social Programs (CadÚnico), and reported that, in May 2025, 345,542 (three hundred and forty-five thousand, five hundred and forty-two) people were living on the streets in Brazil. Considering underreporting, this number may be even higher. A central question regarding the number of people experiencing homelessness, and which this work attempts to answer, concerns the relationship of these people with racial issues, considering that, according to data from IPEA (Institute for Applied Economic Research), 68% of this population identifies as Black. Given structural racism and the problems stemming from the processes of slavery in Brazil, we ask whether it is possible to consider life on the streets in Brazil as a consequence of slavery and to speak of reparations for damages. Answering this question is the objective of this work. This research will employ a critical legal perspective as its theoretical framework, particularly a decolonial approach, and was conducted using secondary data, bibliographic research, and documentary analysis. It is an engaged research project.