Bruno Cabral says he is brown and has dark skin, even after the hetero-identification panel concluded that “the phenotype is that of a socially white person”

A candidate managed to take office at the State Audit Court (TCE-BA) as a black man, even after the competition’s hetero-identification panel stated that he is a white man. Bruno Gonçalves Cabral, 35 years old, says he is mixed race and requested an injunction to take up the position, but the request was denied by the Court of Justice. He appealed, claiming to have had a brown-skinned grandfather, and presented a medical report that says he has dark skin that tans easily, and he succeeded.

Judge Maria do Rosário Passos da Silva Calixto suspended the decisions of the hetero-identification commission and ordered the candidate’s provisional return to the list of approved black quota holders, until there is a decision on the merits by the first-degree judge. The vacancy is for State External Control Auditor. In the decision, the judge reproduced the conclusion of the competition’s examining board.

“According to an analysis of the candidate Bruno Gonçalves Cabral’s phenotype, it was found that he has: white skin, an elongated nose, a mouth with sharp features and naturally non-curly hair. Such characteristics fit him into the phenotype of a socially white person, not likely to suffer discrimination based on color/race or ethnicity, given the appearance they present”, state the examiners.

The hereto-identification panel concludes. “Thus, we reject the self-declaration of the aforementioned candidate, since his phenotype was not identified, by this hetero-identification commission, entirely or in its majority, consistent with people from the black population (black and mixed race)”, says the opinion.

The judge states that the examiners’ text is the same as that used to dismiss other candidates in the same competition, remembering that it is not up to the judiciary to replace the examining board, but that it is up to the analysis of the legality of the act. She states that Bruno said he had a brown grandfather and aunt, that the candidate presented a dermatological report that says he has dark skin that tans easily and granted the injunction. Maria do Rosário states that the decision is partial, while the merits are judged by the first judge in the case.

In the broad competition, Bruno came in 45th place and could not be approved. Among quota holders, it occupies 8th position, being second to last in the ranking of vacancies available for this public. When contacted, Bruno Cabral stated that he is a brown person, that the panel’s decision was wrong and that he is awaiting judgment.

“I assumed the status of a brown person, provided for in the legislation. The panel’s justifications are not sustainable when saying that I have white skin and thin, pink lips. Anyone around me clearly sees a brown person. For now, the judge agreed with the evidence presented, but the process is still ongoing. Furthermore, other people with a phenotype close to mine had their self-declaration accepted”, he stated.

Black candidates complained about him taking office. Bruno also took part in the competition for State Tax Agent at the Bahia State Finance Department, in 2022, and for Technician in Geographic Information and Statistics at IBGE, in 2016, where there were vacancies for black people, but he opted for broad competition. He said that he did not use the quotas in these competitions because he was unaware of his own right. Bruno said that the panel also refused the self-declaration of a current TCE employee, in the previous year, in a different selection process, and that the body acts arbitrarily.

“This same panel identified as brown black individuals with characteristics identical to mine in the same TCE process: skin color, type of mouth and type of hair.” And he concluded. “The panel did not state that I am white, but ‘socially white’, an ideological construction of the institution, which hurts my life story even more,” he said.

After his classification was denied by the hetero-identification panel, Bruno appealed, the examiners carried out a new analysis and upheld the decision. On April 19, the final result of the competition was published, with the definitive list of black candidates and without his name and that of other candidates who had their self-declaration refused.

Bruno then filed a request for early relief so that the Court of Justice could reverse the panel’s decision. The candidate also requested the benefit of free justice, stating that he was unable to pay the costs of the process, valued at R$1,000.

Judge Marcelo de Oliveira Brandão rejected both requests. The judge said that there is an absence of elements to justify the anticipation of the right without analyzing the merits and did not grant the injunction, and stated that when analyzing the records it is possible to identify that Bruno had an income of more than R$6 thousand and did not have the requirements to have the right to free justice. The candidate appealed on July 9th and obtained the injunction that allowed him to take office on October 1st.

In a note, the TCE informed that the competition had 20 vacancies and was valid for 90 days, and that it had the duty to call those approved during the validity of the competition. The Court highlighted that although the candidate has already taken office, the issue is sub judice, awaiting the Court’s decision.

“The Court of Auditors sent to the State Attorney General’s Office (PGE), which is responsible for carrying out the judicial defense of the interests of the State of Bahia, the subsidies and information so that the fairness of the procedure could be defended during the hetero-identification process, arguing that it followed the legal rules of the notice to try to reverse the preliminary decision”, says the note.

When contacted, the Public Ministry of Bahia reported that it “received representation about the case, filed a factual report and sent a letter to the State Court of Auditors requesting a statement regarding the facts.”

Fundação Getúlio Vargas, responsible for the competition and the hetero-identification panel, stated in a statement that it “has no relationship with the call and inauguration after the competition”.

He also added that “the hetero-identification procedure strictly complies with legal provisions, in this competition notably Bahia State Law nº 13,182/2014, regulated by Bahia State Decree nº 15,353/2014, both in the analysis of the candidates’ phenotype that is observed by the commission (item 8.6 of the opening notice) as well as in the composition of the commission, which must be mixed and heterogeneous, formed by professionals with experience in the topic of racial diversity”.