Chess game for affirmative action at UFRJ

Abstract

In this paper, we analyze the process that lead the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) to adopt affirmative action admission in the early 2010s. For a long time UFRJ was nationally considered the headquarters of anti-affirmative action. So, why did that University finally take that decision? Our analysis revealed that the debate on affirmative action in that university was entangled in a wider discussion on higher education reform. This finding can help us to understand fundamental aspects of the true spirit of the quotas approved in that university. In the mid-2000s, UFRJ officers underestimated the necessity to be prepared for the symbolic, cultural and political changes that the increasing diversity inside the student body would bring. How deeply the lack of a substantial reflection on race, ethnicity, gender and class may expose UFRJ community to a chronic incapacity to address those contradictions when they become evident?