BBB 24: Why ‘nicknames’ used in the reality show can be offensive to minority groups

BBB 24 (Globo) started just over ten days ago, but it was enough time for the public to notice the frequency of use of nicknames that could be considered offensive as pronouns of address by the edition’s cast. The main ones concern people with disabilities and race.

It is worth remembering that, depending on how it is perceived by the victim, this last case can be reported and classified as a crime of racism and is punishable by two to five years in prison, in addition to a fine.

Diversity experts who follow the BBB explained to the F5 the reasons for the nicknames and gave tips on how to avoid them outside of reality.

TREATMENT OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

The first case that caught attention outside the house was during the leader’s first race, when the already eliminated Maycon Cosmer, 35, tried to nickname the amputated limb of para-athlete Vinicius Rodrigues “Cotinho”. Other brothers also used the Camarote group participant’s disability to refer to him: “Perninha”.

“They tried to create a relaxed atmosphere, but they obviously crossed the line,” said consultant at the Mais Diversidade institute, Julia Drezza. For her, the reality episode reflects the misinformation and ableism also experienced outside the home.

Drezza, like Vinícius, is part of the 8.9% of Brazilians with disabilities. The data are from the National Household Sample Survey, carried out by IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) in 2022.

The consultant is in favor of a balance between the most severe criticism of prejudices and group reflections capable of generating curiosity among those involved. Hence why she believes in BBB as an educational tool.

“I’m a fan of the program. It has the power to pierce bubbles and communicate with many audiences. It doesn’t just speak to those who like diversity, it accesses a lot of people”, he stated.

Regarding the appropriate ways to treat a person with a disability, Drezza gave two tips. The first is a way to break the ice. “Do it like this: ‘Hello, how are you? I noticed you have a disability. How can I make this environment more accessible for us?’.”

The second tip is not to ask what caused someone’s disability. “The person may have acquired the disability in a violent situation or in an accident in which a loved one died. It could be a trigger,” she recalls.

It is a fact that the athlete has been making jokes about his own body, but according to experts, this is no reason to believe that it is okay to use them in a public space or with anyone else. Those who are the target of prejudiced nicknames or jokes do not always express their dissatisfaction with the situation.

TREATMENT WITH INDIGENOUS PEOPLES

Disability was not the only social marker used as a nickname within the BBB. Race was the topic of other cases.

Within the program, Leidy Elin, 26, and Isabelle Nogueira, 31, managed to establish limits. Both were nicknamed in ways they considered racist by other BBB participants.

Isabelle told Rodriguinho that she doesn’t like being called “Indian”, as the singer did on the live program on the 11th.

She considers the term pejorative and advised her brother to use another term to refer to people with the same ancestry as her. “It’s indigenous or native people. ‘India’ was when the colonizer arrived in Brazil”, said the sister.

Isabelle’s demand coincides with the stance of the National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (Funai), which also chose to abandon the expression Indian in the name of the institution.

TREATMENT OF BLACK PEOPLE

Days before, Leidy was surprised to be called a “monkey” by Lucas Luigi, who is also black. At the time, the carioca justified it by saying that she talks like that to black people close to him. Leidy didn’t like it and talked to him alone.

Ednalva Moura, institutional relations manager at the Pacto de Promoção da Equality Racial association, liked Leidy’s attitude. She also recalled that the term could be considered offensive even though it was used by a black participant.

“Racism permeates everyone’s thinking, biases are present in all social relationships, which is why we must combat racial nicknames on a daily basis, regardless of the group to which we belong,” he stated.

Moura pointed out that black families are more careful not to reproduce pejorative words within their homes. Therefore, she says that everyone needs more information on the topic.

“When [algo assim] takes place on national television, the media plays an extremely important role in the process of anti-racist education, and this situation contributes to the trivialization of the fight for human rights, respect for diversity and the search for racial equity”, he assessed.