From Affirmative Actions of Social Movements to Public Policies for Affirmative Action

The movement of popular pre-university entrance courses and the democratization of higher education

Abstract

In the years 1990, themes relating to racial issues were granted a big relevance amidst the political debates held in the society. This was a result of the historical struggles of the Black Movement in Brazil, which consequently allowed for a greater space in the debate surrounding public policies and the issues relating to affirmative action. The present work proposes a reflection about the production of the concept of affirmative action itself. We attempt to present a definition in line with the perspective of universalization of rights. Social movements - namely the "Movimento dos Cursos Pré-Vestibulares Populares", a local social movement that organizes and maintains training courses to prepare low-income candidates to enter higher education via the College Entrance Examination - pose a material baseline from which we try to construct a definition of affirmative action.