Protests broke out across Brazil over the assassination of a popular left wing activists in an act of defiancea against an icnreasingly right wing and violent state./ Article by Jeremy Drinkall our Schools Convenor.

On 14 March, Marielle Franco (38), a city councillor from Rio de Janeiro, a member of the Party for Socialism and Freedom, PSOL, an LGBT activist and one of the few black women to hold political office in Brazil, was shot dead in her car in the street.

The nature of the attack points to an execution, ordered by the police. Huge demonstrations and rallies took place in Rio with the crowds chanting “Marielle Presente” – “Marielle lives on amongst us”.

Marielle had alienated the police through her campaigning against their acts of violence, murders and arbitrary arrests, against poor, mostly black, victims. Her appearance before the “Truth Commission”, and her unmasking of police murders there, was probably considered an outrageous provocation.

News of another death of an innocent black and minority ethnic (BAME) person at the hands of the police could unfortunately be no surprise here. Since 1990 there have been over 1,500 unexplained deaths in police custody in the UK, over 500 of them BAME, at least 17 in Brixton prison.

The struggle against racism and police justice in international.

• No more deaths in police custody – not in Lambeth, not in Rio, not anywhere!
• Bring the killers to justice!
• A luta continua!