Mario Osava

RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov 13 2006 (IPS) – Brazil s minister of health, Agenor Álvares, has admitted that the public health system is imbued with racism, stirring up more controversy over policies for specific treatment plans targeting Brazilians of African descent.
There are clear signs of discriminatory practices, one possible factor in the higher incidence among Afro-descendants of a number of illnesses, the minister said at a seminar on the special policies two weeks ago in Rio de Janeiro.

There have been similar critical responses to other programmes designed to correct social inequalities in Brazil. Some say that poverty, not ethnic origin, is the reason that health indicators are worse among blacks, while others argue that Brazil s racial mix has eliminat…