Ten years of lei de cotas: Students’ counter-stories of progress and persistent inequity in higher education in Brazil

This qualitative study examines the impact of Brazil’s affirmative action policy, Lei de Cotas (Lei nº 12.711/2012), on access, equity, and belonging for students of color in higher education. Framed by Critical Race Theory (CRT) and counter-storytelling methodology, the research centers the narratives of 12 Brazilian students of color enrolled in U.S. graduate programs who navigated higher education under the policy. Conducted against the backdrop of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision ending race-conscious admissions, the study contrasts Brazil’s decade-long commitment to race-conscious quotas with the U.S. retreat from affirmative action. Findings reveal that while Lei de Cotas significantly expanded access, evidenced by a 29.1% increase in Black and Indigenous student enrollment from 2012–2015, structural barriers such as financial precarity, racial microaggressions, and Eurocentric curricula persist. Participants highlighted the policy’s role in fostering diversity and community but critiqued institutional unpreparedness to support marginalized students, emphasizing gaps between formal inclusion and substantive equity. Their experiences underscore the social construction of race in Brazil, challenges to meritocratic myths, and the contingent nature of racial progress under interest convergence. The study concludes that while Lei de Cotas represents a critical step toward educational justice, its transformative potential remains limited without intersectional reforms, including expanded financial aid, anti-racist training, curriculum decolonization, and retention-focused policies. By amplifying student voices, this research contributes to global debates on affirmative action, advocating for policies that address systemic inequities while centering the lived realities of marginalized communities.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.A.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Latin American Studies

Grantor

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2025

Author dc:creator

• Soares Barros, Otavio Augusto

Contributors dc:contributor

• Flores, Osly
• Szremski, Kasia

• Education Policy
• Latin America
• Affirmative Action
• Critical Race Theory

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2025 Otavio Soares Barros

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129628

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F129628