Uma cidade, dois mundos: uma análise sociológica do direito no município de São Gabriel da Cachoeira

Abstract

This dissertation aims to describe and analyze the legal field and access to the Judicial System in the city of São Gabriel da Cachoeira, Amazonas, Brazil. First, it presents the concepts that provide the theoretical foundation to describe the legal system in Brazil. This section also proposes a critical view of the Law by describing issues of social inequality and the struggle for recognition by indigenous populations. Second, it presents the history of the locus of this project, the city of São Gabriel da Cachoeira. Then, it presents the results of a field observations conducted at the city’s legal institutions and police stations, which also serves as the city’s prison. Finally, in-depth interviews with representatives from the legal system and from native Brazilian populations reveal the different narratives about justice in the city. These narratives provide a picture of the causes that prevent proper access to justice by local people. Results reveal that the native population in São Gabriel da Cachoeira still lacks access to the judicial system because of its conservative legal system with stiff demands. As a result, the courts do not recognize the rights and dignity of the native people, leading to a gap between the legal institutions and the local population.