Six years after murder, institute keeps Marielle Franco’s legacy alive
After the night of March 14, 2018, the family of murdered councilwoman Marielle Franco found themselves surrounded by a combination of strong feelings: grief, mourning, the indignation that still fuels the search for justice, and the need to never let the activist’s fight for a better society die.
The commotion caused by the killings of Franco and her driver Anderson Gomes has only served to make the name of the black, bisexual woman from Rio de Janeiro, who grew up in the Maré favela, more widely known throughout Brazil.
But it was necessary to institutionalize all the emotional turmoil experienced by Franco’s family. This is how Marielle Franco Institute was conceived.
“The institute brings history back to life. The answer has to be given to me, as a mother, and to the family. The whole world wants to know who and why Marielle was killed,” Marinete da Silva, the councilwoman’s mother and founding adviser of the Marielle Franco Institute, told Agência Brasil.
“Whoever had Marielle killed could hardly have imagined she was a seed, and that millions of Marielles around the world would rise up the next day,” a text on the institute’s website reads.
The nonprofit is sponsor-funded and also receives donations from individuals. Its main activities include demanding justice, preserving Marielle Franco’s memory—which so often comes under attack from fake news—and embodying her political legacy, attracting and encouraging new leaders from the outskirts of the city, especially black women living in favelas.
“That’s the role of the institute, to bring this woman center stage and say how important it is to occupy this place. Women have to be wherever they want to be, and Marielle carries this significance with her, with the perspective of peripheral areas,” Silva pointed out.
Inspiration
Until 2022, Marielle Franco Institute was run by the councilwoman’s sister, Anielle Franco. When she was appointed Minister of Racial Equality under President Lula in 2023, the position was taken by Lígia Batista. Batista, also a black woman from the fringes of Rio, had known Franco since before she became a city councilor. The defense of human rights brought the two women together. Batista worked with related issues for NGO Amnesty International Brasil.
“Seeing Marielle speak to people—how she was able to cast a wide net and communicate her causes—was extremely inspiring for me. I’m happy to have had the opportunity to meet Mari while she was still alive,” Batista said.
She believes that, by defending Franco’s memory and sowing her ideals, the institute can change realities across Brazil.
“We believe in the possibility of creating futures, so that people like Marielle can not only access but also remain in positions of power and decision-making, thus transforming our democracy and continuing the fight for justice, dignity, and a good life for everyone.”
The institute is a catalyst for activities such as human rights training courses, seminars and the development of strategies linking other nonprofits and collectives, particularly those from marginalized communities and minorities, such as black and LGBTQIA+ people.
“It’s essential to be able to inspire new generations to understand how our lives are crossed by inequalities of gender, race, and class, but also to see ourselves as protagonists in this process, because we know that the political structures have not served our purposes in life,” Batista told Agência Brasil.
A network of seeds
Marielle Franco Institute’s logo is a depiction of seeds, a symbol that alludes to one of the verbs most commonly used by the initiative: to sow, which represents the creation of social awareness among young people from the outskirts of the city.
One of the members of this network of seeds is Raquel Marte, who teaches impoverished youths preparing for university admission exams in Niterói, in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro. She has a degree in literature and is currently studying cultural production. It was at the institute that she had the most contact with human rights courses and organizations.
“That’s the subject I had contact with at university. But a lot of the people [at the institute] are from marginalized communities, people with little education. There, they’re given a chance to learn about their rights as citizens. Through access to correct information, we can make any kind of change in society,” Marte stated.
A call for action
The institute also seeks to establish a dialog with the other end of the political chain: the elected representatives. Through a set of anti-racist, anti-LGBTphobic, feminist, and popular demands and practices dubbed Agenda Marielle, the organization urges authorities and decision makers to take political action.
“Essentially, this relationship is based on a provocation we make to candidates as well as to those elected, in a bid to get them to commit to our demands and practices. We call on progressive candidates, those who are inspired by this symbol of struggle Marielle has become, to sign and support this agenda during their time in office. It’s a powerful path we’ve been exploring,” Batista affirmed.
In the view of Political Science Professor João Feres, from the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), dialog with legislators needs to reach a broader political spectrum if bigger results are to be achieved.
“Civil society organizations have invested a great deal in building ties with the Legislative—which is far from easy, but a task of the utmost importance nonetheless. Capital owners have abundant resources to hire dedicated lobbying firms on a daily basis. Organizations, on the other hand, need to promote the professionalization of this activity in order to compete, something that doesn’t come cheap. The point is, it’s not enough to establish close contacts with politicians already aligned with these issues. We also need to exert pressure on those on the fringes of these discussions, so to speak—those who don’t have strong contrary interests. They could come in handy,” he argued.
Political violence
Despite her enthusiasm for political participation, Batista noted that the institute’s biggest challenge today is political representation—more specifically political violence.
“The biggest challenge is precisely the extent to which political violence not only keeps people away from wanting to participate in institutional politics, but also how much the political violence from those inside ends up undermining the chances of building other possible worlds,” she argued.
“The fight against gender- and race-based political violence is really important to us. It makes a huge impact on the lives of black women, LGBT people, not to mention people from the favelas and the outskirts of the city. We believe that ending political violence could make Brazilian democracy stronger,” she added.
Society mobilized
Marielle Franco Institute is one more organization in the array of movements that seek to bring citizens center stage.
“Without people’s participation there’s no sense of citizenship; without people’s participation there’s no interplay of the forces necessary to create and implement measures, monitor and demand the fulfillment of the responsibilities of national states in terms of human, social, cultural, and political rights,” Jurema Werneck, executive director of Amnesty International Brasil, told Agência Brasil.
“Marielle was the fruit of black women’s movements. In her generation, she left her contribution to amplifying the voices of historically silenced groups.”
Werneck believes the fight for justice for both Franco and her driver Gomes goes beyond a response to a specific crime.
“Above all, it’s about ensuring that brutal killings like hers and Anderson [Gomes]’s are not repeated—as they have been—with complete impunity throughout Brazil.”
The director believes the murder has served to boost the reach of Franco’s work.
“Marielle’s activism as a black, bisexual mother has always been inspiring and extremely powerful. After her murder, we added all this to our pursuit of justice in order to continue the struggle not only for human rights, but also for rights defenders in this country,” she declared.
In the opinion of UERJ Professor João Feres, the efforts of organizations such as Marielle Franco Institute have achieved “an unprecedented cultural transformation in Brazil, placing racial and gender inequality as top-priority issues on the agenda.”
“This cultural transformation has taken place in conjunction with public and private institutions that are increasingly sensitive to this issue,” he said. To his judgment, this was only possible during years of progressive governments, which were more open to the participation of civil society than right-wing administrations.
“Marielle Institute has emerged in phase 2.0 of this struggle, so to speak. It’s remarkable that it’s emerged and gained strength in a context that was not at all favorable under [former president Jair] Bolsonaro’s extreme right,” Professor Feres stated.
A milestone in the pursuit of justice
Marielle Franco Institute organized a range of initiatives for the six-year anniversary of the murder of Anderson Gomes and the councilwoman. On Thursday morning (Mar. 14) a mass was held at the Nossa Senhora do Parto church in downtown Rio de Janeiro.
The location has an emblematic significance, as it is just a few meters from the Buraco do Lume, a public square where Franco used to make speeches. A statue of the councilor has been placed in the square.
At 5 pm, the Justice for Marielle & Anderson Festival began at Praça Mauá, also in Rio’s downtown area. The event was free and featured artistic performances and exhibitions in tribute to Franco.
The crime
Marielle Franco and Anderson Gomes were killed on a Tuesday night. She had left a meeting at the Casa das Pretas Institute in downtown Rio. Her car was chased by criminals to the Estácio district, moving north. Investigations and a plea bargain point to former military officer Ronnie Lessa as the person who fired the shots. The vehicle was hit by thirteen bullets.
Lessa is in prison and has been convicted of smuggling firearm parts. The author of the plea bargain is also onetime military agent Élcio Queiroz, who was driving the Cobalt used in the crime.
Another man suspected of being involved is former firefighter Maxwell Simões Correia, known as Suel. He was responsible for delivering the Cobalt for dismantling. According to the probes, they are all involved with militia groups.
At the end of February, the police arrested Edilson Barbosa dos Santos, known as Orelha. He is the owner of the junkyard where the vehicle used in the murder is believed to have been dismantled and disposed of. The man had been reported by prosecutors in August 2023. He is accused of hindering and obstructing investigations.
Despite the arrests, no one has been convicted six years after the crime. Since 2023, the investigation initiated by the Rio de Janeiro police has been conducted by the Federal Police.
