Who is Damares Alves, Brazil’s new Minister of Human Rights?

On Thursday afternoon, Jair Bolsonaro’s future Chief of Staff, Onyx Lorenzoni, announced the latest appointment to Brazil’s incoming cabinet. Damares Alves will be put in charge of the Ministry of Women, Family, and Human Rights, becoming only the second female minister in the new government. Mr. Lorenzoni also announced that Brazil’s indigenous affairs agency, FUNAI, will become a part of Ms. Alves’ ministry.

In her first public declaration after the appointment, Ms. Alves vehemently backed equal pay for women, promising to knock on the doors of companies where men earn more than women for the same work. Jair Bolsonaro was roundly criticized during the election campaigns for statements he made in relation to the equal pay question, suggesting that Ms. Alves’ appointment (and her choice of words) were...