Does Brazil Observe Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Higher Education? Demand, supply and alternative initiatives in São Gabriel da Cachoeira, Amazonas

Abstract

This article addresses the indigenous demand for higher education in Brazil, a right desired but not recognized by law and public opinion. Interpreting it in the light of a universal right to lifelong education, and under a decolonial take guided by contemporary indigenous intellectual protagonism, we trace an exploratory panorama of higher education opportunities for indigenous populations in São Gabriel da Cachoeira (northwest Brazilian Amazon) and describe two teacher training courses with alternative practices. The access of indigenous people poses incipient tension to mainstream university models, even though the supply, confirming our hypothesis, does not correspond to the demographic and political relevance of the indigenous peoples’ demand.