The
last member of an Indigenous tribe in Brazil has
tragically died, shining light on decades of genocide by
colonists and the Brazilian government. The man, who was
nicknamed the 'Man of the Hole,' survived for decades in
isolation, remarkably evading contact and protecting
himself from growing threats to tribal lands in the
country. With his death comes the total loss of
a language and culture. Very little is known
about this man or his life, but human rights
organizations believe that the rest of his tribe was
brutally massacred in attacks by gunmen decades ago. In
the 1970s, colonists and
ranchers hired gangs of gunmen to literally slaughter
the Indigenous people who stood in the way of
extraction, ranching, and other forms of Amazon land
"development."
Currently,
tribes hold a few reserves that the Land Protection
Orders has preserved. But Bolsonaro's presidency
has been rife with human rights abuses against
Indigenous people. In fact, some Indigenous
leaders called for courts to try the right-wing
president for crimes against humanity. A recent
investigation even showed that illegal airstrips are
operating throughout the Amazon rainforest, allowing
toxic mining to infiltrate dozens of Indigenous
territories and one of the most important ecosystems in
the world. Clearly, the country needs strong,
permanent land preservation to respect tribal
sovereignty and Indigenous rights.
Sign the petition to demand
that the Brazilian government create lasting land
protections for all Indigenous
people!
