Beyond the law: the school as an arena for the (re)construction of democracy from afro-brazilian and indigenous cultures

Brazil, influenced by global movements that emerged notably from the late 20th and early 21st centuries, was the stage for numerous struggles and conquests of rights, among them the right to the democratization of Education, as well as public and social policies that would address and respect socially disadvantaged and minority groups. As a reflection, Brazil saw the implementation of measures to attenuate and mitigate the effects of the exclusion of these social groups through legislation, such as Law 10,639 of 2003, which mandates the inclusion of Afro-Brazilian and African History and Culture in the curricula of basic education as a historical milestone, and Law 11,645 of 2008, which expands the previous law, highlighting the need to also present Indigenous history and culture. These laws constitute a step towards democratic education in schools. Thus, this work aims to reflect on the importance of Afro-Brazilian and Indigenous cultures in the construction of a democratic school. To this end, in addition to a bibliographic research using the SCIELO database, educational activities encompassing the theme of the democratic school were proposed. Based on the research findings, it is concluded that the school is imbued with the responsibility to put an end to the false and reductive way of treating the contribution of enslaved Africans, as well as Indigenous peoples and their descendants, to the construction of Brazil, and also to ensure that within its walls, Black and Indigenous students cease to suffer continued acts of racism and violence.