Um desafio à escola brasileira: relações sociais inclusivas entre alunos bolivianos e brasileiros

Abstract

This article aims to present the challenges of social relations between Bolivians and Brazilians in primary and high schools of São Paulo, Brazil. Schools can be a promising environment to socialize immigrants within a host society. However, a number of key factors can hinder this social integration, including: intensive labor in the garment industry, precarious housing conditions, the lack of language skills, and immaterial aspects such as prejudice and cultural differences. Finally, we analyze the role of multicultural policies in dealing with those challenges. The results show that social integration is difficult and complex, even for the second generation of Bolivians. Our research concludes with a discussion on cases of “new racism” – where hierarchies based on cultural differences create Otherness. Even though some schools have adopted preventive and intervening measures at a local level, there is a lack of multicultural policies that address long-term solutions.