Brasil, Povos Indígenas E a Doutrina Do Descobrimento, Do Direito Internacional (Brazil, Indigenous Peoples, and the International Law of Discovery)

105 Pages Posted: 23 Feb 2012

See all articles by Robert J. Miller

Robert J. Miller

Arizona State University (ASU) - Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law

Micheline D'Angelis

Independent Researcher

Date Written: February 21, 2012

Abstract

The English version of this paper can be found at http://ssrn.com/abstract=1768350

The Doctrine of Discovery, viewed through the lens of six hundred years of international law, has shaped Brazil’s legal history and laws ever since 1500 when Portugal claimed first discovery of the territory. A comparative law examination of the Doctrine’s long history in Portuguese and European law demonstrates that Portugal’s domination of Brazil was founded on feudal, religious, racial, and ethnocentric justifications. The adaptation of many of the Doctrine’s elements into Portuguese and Brazilian laws and policies for over five hundred years has had profound implications for Indigenous peoples. Brazil’s attempts to create a more positive and equal future for all of its citizens, just as similar efforts in all settler/colonizer societies, must begin with an enlightened recognition of this history and the Doctrine of Discovery. Only then can serious efforts to eradicate the Doctrine from Brazilian law and international law provide some resolution to deeply-rooted issues in a place of justice and healing.

Note: Downloadable document is in Portuguese.

Keywords: Indigenous Peoples, International Law, Colonization, Legal History, Comparative Law, Indian Law

Suggested Citation

Miller, Robert J. and D'Angelis, Micheline, Brasil, Povos Indígenas E a Doutrina Do Descobrimento, Do Direito Internacional (Brazil, Indigenous Peoples, and the International Law of Discovery) (February 21, 2012). Brooklyn Journal of International Law, Vol. 37, No. 1, 2011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2009046

Robert J. Miller (Contact Author)

Arizona State University (ASU) - Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law ( email )

Box 877906
Tempe, AZ 85287-7906
United States
4809654085 (Phone)

Micheline D'Angelis

Independent Researcher ( email )

10015 S.W. Terwilliger Blvd.
Portland, OR 97219
United States
9712359950 (Phone)
97222 (Fax)

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