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Brazilians Embrace Biracial Identity as White Population Declines, Census Shows

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — According to the latest census data released by Brazil’s statistics agency, more Brazilians identified as biracial rather than white last year, marking a significant shift in the country’s racial demographics. The Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) stated that approximately 92.1 million people, accounting for 45.3% of the population, consider themselves biracial. In contrast, 88.2 million Brazilians, representing 43.5% of the population, identify as white.

The figures reveal a notable contrast to the 2010 census, where 47.7% of Brazilians declared themselves as white and 43.1% identified as biracial. This shift in demographics marks the first time since 1991 that biracial individuals have surpassed the white population in Brazil, a country marred by a history of racism against Black and Indigenous communities since the era of slavery.

In Brazil, the official racial categories used by IBGE are white, black, brown, yellow, and Indigenous. The term “brown” refers to individuals of biracial heritage, while “yellow” pertains to individuals of Asian descent. The agency’s census, initiated in 1872 during a time when enslaved Brazilians were still under the control of European landowners and their descendants, aims to provide insights into the country’s evolving racial makeup.

IBGE further reveals that 20.6 million Brazilians, constituting 10.2% of the population, identify as Black, marking a significant increase compared to the 7.6% figure recorded in 2010. Additionally, 1.7 million individuals (0.8%) identify as Indigenous, and over 850,000 individuals (0.4%) claim yellow as their racial identity.

The agency highlighted that the share of the Black, Indigenous, and biracial populations has increased across all age groups between 2010 and 2022, while the white and yellow populations have experienced a decline. This demonstrates a significant shift in Brazil’s racial composition over the past decade.

Furthermore, IBGE’s data reveals that biracial populations form the majority in 58.3% of Brazil’s cities, particularly in the impoverished northeast region. In contrast, white populations constitute the majority in 41% of cities, primarily in the wealthier southeast and south regions of the country.

This transformation in Brazil’s racial demographics signifies a growing acceptance and embrace of biracial identity among Brazilians. As the biracial population continues to rise, it is indicative of a changing society that is breaking away from traditional racial classifications.

Mauricio Savarese, The Associated Press

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