Thiago Amparo: “Being an activist is fighting for changes in the neighborhood and in the world”

In the tobacco plantation, symbol of the United States of the 19th century, the young Hiram Walker has his workforce exploited and his existence usurped. Using the affective memory of his mother, an enslaved black woman, as a superpower, he escapes from his father’s lands, a white man and slave owner, in search of emancipation in every sense.

The plot of A Dança da Água (Intrinsic), by the African-American writer Ta-Nehisi Coates, included the moments of escape of the lawyer, teacher and columnist Thiago Amparo during the pandemic. In the epigraph, Coates points out that his role was “to tell the story of the slave. There is no lack of narrators for the history of the Lord”.

The protagonism of the black narrative, combined with the fantasy of the novel, would also serve to reveal Thiago’s journey in the profession, in the activism of the black movement and LGBTQIA+ and in his way of life. “This combination allows us to talk about hard and historically important issues, such as slavery in this case, but through a magic that lets us dream and build the future”, he says, in front of his stuffed bookshelf.

In childhood, reading was a refuge for shyness. “Books made me less lonely, they created new worlds. To this day, through them, I leave the place where I am and travel. The proximity to reading and then writing led me to think of jobs in which I could use them”, recalls Thiago about his first professional filter.

The second influence was due to family life. Almir de Souza Amparo, his father, had studied law and had a small law firm in Osasco, in Greater São Paulo, where he met Rosana da Silva, a secretary, who would later become his wife.

“My mother used to say that the office looked like an NGO. There were several people who could not afford a lawyer, but needed help. Their happiness at arriving home after changing someone’s life led me to the law”, reveals the professor, who in his first year of college thought about becoming a judge.

The plans gained new directions when he did an internship at the Franco da Rocha Forum. “I looked at the processes of adolescents in socio-educational measures that involved cases of mistreatment and torture. It impacted me a lot. The experience opened up a range for me and I saw what I wanted: change through the practice of my profession”, says Thiago about the encounter with human rights, which after graduation took him to Budapest, Hungary, where he did a master’s degree at the Central European University.

Years after this unexpected start, he continues to talk about the topic in classrooms, lectures and the media. The lawyer was also Deputy Secretary for Human Rights and Citizenship at the São Paulo City Hall between January and May 2017.

This year, the routine, which was already tight to make room for multiple activities, became even more intense in isolation. “Like many people, I poured all my energy into work. But I saw that I couldn’t take it like that”, says the professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation, in São Paulo.

With the rise of the anti-racism debate and against police violence, motivated by the death of George Floyd, in the United States, and João Pedro, in Rio de Janeiro, Thiago began to contribute frequently to GloboNews journalistic programs.

The gateway was the identity agenda, but the plurality of his academic and professional background also made it possible to participate in the broadcaster’s coverage of the US presidential elections. “I am so happy to talk more and more about comparative international and constitutional law, not just racism. Or rather, all of that”, he celebrated in his profile on twitter🇧🇷

On the social network, the lawyer gained influencer status, especially among black people and allies. The tweets reveal a more incisive side, but no less diplomatic. In a few characters, he uses his didactics to deconstruct daydreams, such as the allegations of reverse racism after Magazine Luiza announced its exclusive trainee for blacks, and analyzes attitudes of national and international public representatives.

Flexibility and positioning were developed from childhood in the Housing Complex (Cohab) in Carapicuíba, where he lived until he was 6 years old, and then on the dead-end street where he lived with his parents until he was late in his youth, in Osasco. “I played with my friends and lived at the neighbors’ house. A feeling of camaraderie was created for everyone,” she says.

“You don’t need a card, activism is thinking and acting together for social change, whether in the neighborhood or in the world”

Thiago Amparo

At home, he also had his parents as an example of the power to believe in himself. “They taught me respect, but not subservience. I understood that I don’t need to bow my head because I’m poor and black, but at the same time, that doesn’t mean stepping on people. It’s a confidence without arrogance ”, he defines, delivering what he considers one of the greatest lessons he learned and carries with him to this day.

For him, activism reflects this equation and is fed in the collective. “We can all be activists. It is not necessary to have a card. Activism is knowing the names of the people who work in the same place as you, including those who are at the entrance, it is thinking and acting together for social change, whether in the neighborhood or in the world”, he considers.

A free gateway to activism is not synonymous with a smooth path, of course. Even so, dealing with social causes is not a burden. “Certainly, you feel the history and the injustices suffered. The fight can generate fatigue by putting us in a position against the tide, but we are not alone. I learned that, because the fight is collective, each one can have their role, not everything is on our shoulders. There are times when it is necessary to stop for a while, not to be the protagonist and let others help so that we can move forward”, he advises.

The wear and tear, for the activist, is mitigated with the victories and by this support from the solidarity networks. “I vent by calling friends and writing, which is therapeutic, because it allows me to listen to that voice that is inside me.” If the mind’s refuge is in books and writing, the body’s is in life’s encounters. Thiago is not one for superficial conversations, what delights him and fuels him is eye contact. “The best way to be in the world is not to be alone, either through affective relationships or through friendships. Our responsibility is to share the human experience. This is what makes life worthwhile,” he says.

“When I came out of the closet, it was my friends who solidified me to be who I am. Just as black friends also helped me to recognize my ethnicity”, celebrates the lawyer, who warns of the need to break the bubbles. “Finding common humanity made me more respectful of others, including those I disagree with. It’s important to understand that people live in different ways and that’s okay,” he says.

One of Thiago’s biggest needs during isolation was met a little before this interview in a familiar place: the Museum of Art of São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (Masp), next door to the college where he teaches. The exhibition The Dance in My Experience was on display, with works by the Brazilian Hélio Oiticica.

For Thiago, life on digital screens is incomplete and impoverished because it does not satisfy all human needs and desires. “I missed noticing the beauty of the world and immersing myself in other realities, things that only art provides”, he reveals. Going out was also a way to reconnect socially. “Until then, I was walking my dog ​​and I was already anxious if someone came close. Isolation has bred an apathy for the stranger, which is harmful. Being out in the world contemplating diverse forms of art and socializing is what enriches the journey,” he reflects.

Despite the small doses of affection arising from the passions, it must take some time for Thiago to satisfy another of his desires. A self-confessed reveler, he longs for post-vaccine days with serpentine, a dose of crowds and music. “We dream of a great Carnival after the pandemic, because we need to be among people and free”, points out the activist, who is from the team that prefers to party in the street with the blocks. “But I come back to rest at home, I don’t stay straight”, he confesses, laughing.

For him, the immersion in the ludic and fantasy for a few days still alleviates the harshness of reality a little. “The spirit of Carnival is in this: sharing. It is a democratic and autonomous form of existence, since life is also made in the public space, which is not mine or the other’s, but everyone’s”, he says.

Contrasting with the outpouring of energy from carnival festivities, the search for stillness, at other times, has been its balance point. “This movement of experiencing silence and slowing down the pace of information is important so that we can enjoy the moment as if it were a chocolate cake, in a calm way, to bring lightness. We want to build a world where lightness is possible and, for that, an effort is needed to fit it into the routine”, he advises, free of any guilt, but aware of his commitments.

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