Dec 29, 2020 contributor
"Slave Market" by Johann Moritz Rugendas (1802–1858) depicts a Brazilian slave market. The German artist visited Brazil from 1822-1825. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons.)
In a year the Black Lives Matter movement spread across the globe, Brazilians are beginning to focus on the role the Catholic Church played in the institution of slavery in the country.
SÃO PAULO – In a year the Black Lives Matter movement spread across the globe, Brazilians are beginning to focus on the role the Catholic Church played in the institution of slavery in the country.
Slavery was legal in the South American country from its founding as a Portuguese colony in the 1500s and continued after Brazil gained its independence as the Empire of Brazil in 1822. Slavery wasn’t abolished until 1888, over 20 years after the United States.