Estado penal, racismo estrutural e conservadorismo no Brasil: fundamentos socio-históricos e expressões contemporâneas

Abstract

In this study, we seek to analyze the configurations of the Penal State in the particularities of Brazil, examining the influence of conservatism and neoconservatism in its development and in the consolidation of the punitive and racist character of the State, when it comes to institutional responses to expressions of the social issue, with an emphasis on its contemporary configurations. All research and analysis was produced using historical-dialectical materialism as a theoretical and methodological reference. In light of the socio-historical elements that underpin the constitution of the Penal State in Brazil, in the course of the state of the art, books, master's dissertations, doctoral theses and scientific articles related to the topic were used for the theoretical basis. Nevertheless, the research was also documentary, as we analyzed some legislation, reports from the National Secretariat for Penal Policies (SENAPPEN), the Brazilian Public Security Forum (FBSPO) and some public data released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), related to our study and which deal with the topic. Without prejudice to capitalist socioeconomic determinations, our studies have shown that the constitution of the Penal State in Brazil is rooted in the conservatism present in eugenic theories, racism and the phenomena arising from these, such as prohibitionism and the criminalization of poverty. We have also shown that the Penal State is inexorably advancing in its intertwining with neoconservatism in the context of the neoliberal phase of capital. Based on the data analyzed, it was found that the profile of the prison population and victims of violence in Brazil remains largely made up of black, young and poor people. We therefore conclude that the configuration of the Penal State in this country resides in the combination of welfare, over-incarceration and violence, and is subject to the determinations of the structural racism installed in our society, thus being a racist Brazilian Penal State.