The accumulation of wealth in Brazil, a country marked by deep inequalities, has always been tied to practices rooted in the history of colonialism. To explore philanthropy in Brazil is, inevitably, to speak of colonialism. The foundations and institutes operating in Brazil today were born from fortunes accumulated from colonial plunder, slavery, and territorial exploitation.

So how do we begin to dissect the power structures at play and explore decolonial philanthropy?

This conversation is not just taking place in Brazil. In recent years, publications and conferences on decolonising philanthropy have multiplied in the Global North. Yet many of these conversations appropriate the term without acknowledging or situating the Latin American intellectuals who laid the groundwork: Aníbal Quijano, Enrique Dussel, Walter Mignolo, Catherine Walsh, and Santiago Castro-Gómez. Detached from its roots, the term ‘decolonial’ circulates as a metaphor for incremental institutional change, without confronting the coloniality that structures both philanthropy and the world-system itself.

The risk of trivialisation is real. As the organisers of the first Brazilian School of Decolonial Thought, held in Salvador, Bahia, from 25–30 August, reminded us: everything today seems to acquire the adjective ‘decolonial’. There is even talk of ‘decolonial yoga.’ Yet, while the term loses meaning when used indiscriminately, our discussion of decolonialism cannot become paralysed by purism either. The challenge for the sector is to keep the conversation grounded in reality, without turning it into a slogan or buzzword. We see decoloniality less as a new adjective for old practices and more as a stance toward the world.

In Brazil, this work feels more critical than ever. We were a colony of Portugal for more than three centuries and the last country in the Americas to abolish slavery. Coloniality persists in the way we speak, classify, and design our actions. It is inscribed in the very words we use: beneficiary, impact, advocacy, and accountability. In addition to distributing resources, philanthropy distributes languages and narratives. This is where the decolonial perspective can be transformative: by forcing us to ask whether we are reproducing silences or creating spaces for voice.

Unlearning the Racist Legacy at the Brazilian School of Decolonial Thought

It is no coincidence that the Brazilian School of Decolonial Thought, under the theme Unlearning the racist legacy in American territories, paid tribute to the centennials of Frantz Fanon and Lélia Gonzalez. Fanon, from Martinique, exposed colonialism as a form of ontological violence, marking both body and subjectivity. Lélia Gonzalez, in turn, introduced the category of Amefricanidade, which explores a neutral Brazilian identity, paying tribute to the influence of the African diaspora.

Read the full article about decolonial thought in Brazilian philanthropy by Cássio Aoqui and Andrea Martini Pineda at Alliance Magazine.