The minister Gilmar Mendesof the Federal Supreme Court (STF), took a stand against a law in Votorantim, a city in the hinterland of São Paulo, which prevents the use of the neutral language in local schools. In a recent vote, Mendes deemed the municipal measure unconstitutional. The decision was accompanied by the minister Alexander de Moraesand the process continues in a virtual plenary session until the 11th.
The case began to be discussed on Friday (1) and the ministers’ vote is still awaited André Mendonça, CarmenLucia, Cristiano Zanin, Days Toffoli, Edson Fachin, Flavio Dino, Luiz Fux, Luis Roberto Barroso AND Nunes Marchesi.
What is discussed in the STF
The action, called Action for Failure to Respect the Fundamental Precepts (ADPF), was proposed by the National LGBTI+ Alliance and the Brazilian Association of Homotransaffective Families (ABRAFH). The group questions the constitutionality of the law banning the use of neutral language in public and private schools in the city of São Paulo.
Similar laws in other cities have already been suspended by the Supreme Court in previous decisions. In June, the Court annulled the municipal regulations of Águas Lindas de Goiás (GO) and Ibirité (MG), which also limited the use of the neutral language in schools. In that ruling, all ministers supported the idea that it is up to the Union, and not the municipalities, to legislate on educational issues and pedagogical content.
The Votorantim law, enacted in May 2023, was written by the councilor Cirineu Barbosa (PL) and the former city councilor Thiago Schiming (PSDB). The text claims to protect students’ right to standard Portuguese and prohibits the use of “gender neutral“, considered non-existent in national educational guidelines.
The legislation establishes it “In formal teaching and education environments, the use of language which, by corrupting grammatical rules, intends to refer to the ‘neutral gender’ is prohibited.”
What is neutral language
Neutral language is defined as an attempt at inclusive use of the Portuguese language, according to the linguist Luiz Carlos Schwindtfrom the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul In an interview with CNN, Schwindt explained that neutral language seeks to include people through gender variations, both by promoting the use of the feminine, currently predominant in the masculine, and by using forms that they are not identified as. masculine or feminine.
According to the linguist, neutral linguistic strategies appear especially in writing, such as the use of “X“O”@” to avoid vowels that mark gender.
➡️ @STF_oficial maintains the suspension of the law in the State of Amazonas banning neutral language in the school curriculum. It is understood that it is the sole responsibility of the Union to legislate on the guidelines and foundations for national education. https://t.co/SxBCHZjIwj📝#Accessibility: contains the description… pic.twitter.com/3yD7AEeDv5
— STF (@STF_oficial) June 24, 2024
Source: Terra
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