How the boards that evaluate candidates for racial quotas in competitions and universities work

UnB was one of the first universities to adopt the quota system
Fabio Rodrigues Pozzebom/Agência Brasil
Created to prevent fraud in the racial quota system, the so-called heteroidentification boards are responsible for certifying the legitimacy of the self-declaration made by successful candidates in public competitions for these vacancies.
These boards do not import birth certificates or personal reports. To determine who is or is not able to compete for a vacancy based on racial quotas, this assessment focuses on the physical appearance of candidates registered for vacancies reserved for blacks (black or mixed race).
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Used by federal institutions, the method emerged as a type of inspection of the Quota Law. In a country as mixed-race as Brazil, however, assessments of this type involve subjectivity, which can generate controversy. Next, understand how a hetero-identification panel works.
Why the bank exists
Sanctioned in 2012, the Quota Law is an affirmative policy that seeks to reduce the country's social inequalities. In the case of racial quotas, the law determines that part of the vacancies in federal public examinations are allocated to black, brown, indigenous and quilombola people.
To avoid fraud in the self-declaration of candidates, in 2018 the federal government regulated the hetero-identification procedure for black candidates, arguing that the policy was a demand from civil society and black movements.
This normative ordinance established the rules for the activities of these panels. The rule also aimed to guarantee standardization and equal treatment among candidates who would undergo this procedure.
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What is heteroidentification
Racial quota boards work with the idea of heteroidentification, that is, the gaze of the other. Therefore, the committees do not take into account the way a person identifies themselves (self-declaration), but rather the way they are seen socially.
"A panel is like the eye of society", says Rodrigo Ednilson de Jesus, professor and coordinator of Affirmative Action and Inclusion Policies at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). "The panel is not evaluating the degree of mixed race, but rather whether or not the person is read as black."
The government establishes that these analyzes must only consider the candidate's phenotype. This means that only physical characteristics are observed - such as skin tone, facial features and hair texture.
Aspects such as family tree, dermatological reports or cultural traditions are left out of the panel's evaluation.
According to Rodrigo Ednilson de Jesus, this occurs because Brazilian racism is expressed mainly in the face of phenotypes, and racial quotas were precisely designed as reparation for the population affected by this discrimination.
Who makes up the panel
There is no single body responsible for the panels. Each institution establishes its own rules regarding the composition of these committees. Some mobilize candidates internally, others choose to recruit people from outside.
In the case of universities, these committees are mainly composed of professors, students and civil servants. All members must participate in courses on racial issues and combating racism before joining the committees.
Generally, the panel is made up of five people. It is important that the number is odd so that there is no tie in the result.
In the process, each member makes their own judgment and then the group reaches a collective deliberation, based on the opinion of the majority.
The panel must be diverse, as required by law. "A commission needs to have men, women, whites, blacks", explains the UFMG professor. "So that people look at [the same candidate] from different 'places'."
How the panel works
Although there is no solid rule, most of the time, the panel takes place after the selection process. In other words, when the person has already passed the entrance exam or public exam. Therefore, yes, she is considered suitable or not for the quota vacancy.
As the idea is precisely to evaluate only the person's phenotype, the panel does not conduct interviews. What matters there is the visual analysis, which lasts around 3 minutes, according to Rodrigo.
The government's recommendation is that this process be carried out in person. Analysis using videos or photos is even allowed, but can make the commission's work difficult, as factors such as light, filter and environment can affect our perception of the image.
In addition, regardless of the format, the meeting between the candidate and the panel is recorded - filming can be requested later, if necessary.
Every candidate has the right to challenge the decision of the panel that judged him. In this case, there will be a second committee (composed of other analysts). If the person considers that the error persists, they can then take legal action.
Controversial cases
Flavia Medeiros, Itamaraty civil servant dismissed for 'failing' in racial panel
Emanuelle Sena/ AscomAGU
Because they do not follow concrete objective criteria, there are controversies involving decisions of these commissions. In May, the case of internationalist Flávia Medeiros became news. She was dismissed from Itamaraty, two months after assuming the post of official in the chancellery.
Self-declared black, she was blocked by the hetero-identification panel. Flávia contested the decision and, this Monday (15/06), signed an agreement with the Attorney General's Office (AGU) to resume her position. The decision still needs to be approved by the Federal Court.
One of the most emblematic cases occurred in 2007, when racial quotas were not yet a national public policy, but were already applied in some institutions.
That year, identical twin brothers Alex and Alan Teixeira da Cunha competed for quota places at the University of Brasília (UnB). The college's hetero-identification panel approved Alan's candidacy, but blocked Alex's. After the repercussion of the case, the institution went back and authorized the other brother in the quota dispute.
Itamaraty dismisses woman for failing racial exam
Subjectivity
The use of heteroidentification in the racial quota system generates discussions due to its subjectivity. The look of those on the panel does not necessarily represent that of other people, and this can lead to possible errors in the evaluation.
"In Brazil, there are people clearly read as white, others 'darkly' read as black. But there are people in a place of 'racial ambiguity', when they can be read in some contexts as black, and in others, not", says the UFMG professor.
Co-author of the book "The race that the eyes see: how to control the subjectivity of racial hetero-identification procedures", Rodrigo continues: "Reading a panel is subjective, but it is possible to control this subjectivity." In order to have this control, according to him, it is essential to guarantee technical in-depth studies prior to the formation of the panels.
Márcia Lima, organizer of the collection "The Impact of Quotas: two decades of affirmative action in Brazilian higher education", criticizes the current model. For the sociologist, heteroidentification is, in itself, inappropriate for affirmative policy. In his view, there should be greater focus on self-declaration.
"Treating everyone who fails a commission as a fraudster is cruel. No one should define the identity of each person, much less in the name of the State", he argues. The sociologist argues that, in the event of allegations of fraud or bad faith, there should be a separate investigation.
The challenges
According to professor at the University of São Paulo (USP) and Afro-Cebrap researcher Flavia Rios, the Ministries of Education and Racial Equality are currently discussing possible standardizations of the boards to make them more accurate. But she reinforces that, since the emergence of the committees, several changes have already been made.
"The committees have evolved, learning from their own mistakes and problems. They also realized that it is necessary to have training processes, standardize sizes, hold meetings, seminars and events. But that doesn't mean that occasional mistakes don't happen," he adds.
For Flavia, today's main challenge is ensuring that there is regional diversity on the boards, as the very understanding of what it means to be black is linked to the regional references of each evaluator. "[The understanding of what it is] to be brown in the North of Brazil is very different from what it is in the Center-South, for example. In some regions of the country, the phenotype has greater variation than in others."

Source: G1