Brazil mobilizes for a harassment-free Carnival

Around the world, Brazil’s Carnival is synonymous with parties and, why not, a bit of flirting. However, in a country where 131 femicides occur every day, having safe fun and being respected as a woman is not that easy. Fortunately, this scenario may change in 2019’s Carnival, when sexual harassment will be considered a crime for the first time in Brazil.

Since September 2018, a new law has classified performing a libidinous act against someone, without their consent, as a criminal offense. Before this law, actions such as touching someone without authorization were considered misdemeanors and aggressors were often released after paying a fine. Now, they may be imprisoned for up to 5 years.

So far, many cases of harassment have been reported on public transportation and perpetrators have been arrested. In the Federal District, 53 cases...