“Marielle Franco is a symbol of a woman with great courage.”

On Wednesday, March 15, she was interviewed on the weekly program InfoCLACSO. Joana Coutinho, professor of Political Science at the Federal University of Maranhão in Brazil, coordinator of the study group “Hegemony and struggles in Latin America” and of the Praxis Nucleus.

Among other current issues in her country, she referred to the fifth anniversary of the assassination of the feminist leader. Marielle Franco, shot on the night of March 14, 2018 in Rio de Janeiro along with her driver Anderson Gomes.

“Marielle Franco is a symbol. First, as a woman, young, an activist, and incredibly courageous because she confronted organized crime in Rio de Janeiro. Why was Marielle Franco killed? I think that's the main question. Because she was a voice in Parliament, very competent, very active in the favelas of Rio, but it makes us think about how human rights activists are treated in Brazil. Marielle wasn't the first, and after Marielle we have cases like that of Bruno Pereyra, an indigenous rights activist, who was also brutally murdered,” Joana Coutinho said in an interview. Gustavo Lema, Director of Communication and Information at CLACSO.

See: 5 years since the murder of Marielle Franco in Brazil