CNJ Council Member Votes Against Recording Women Jurists: "Is There a Similar One for Men?"

The statement was made during the vote on the proposal by Chancellor Ivana Farina, at the session of the National Council of Journalists, which creates an online database to record data on female lawyers with experience in different areas of law so that these professionals participate, whenever possible, in institutional events and actions.

“I only find the consultant’s suggestion to be commendable, but is there a similar repository for men? That is the question I ask,” wondered Mario Guerrero, after the consultant presented the idea.

Farina replied that she did not know, but that “there is a reality depicted in the proposal, which is available from authors, compilations and jurists, geared towards male participation”. “Here the proposal deals with female participation,” she said.

Guerreiro then stated, “So it creates a repository only for women, and it’s not about equalizing women with the rights that men have, it’s about giving more rights, is that for women more than men?”

Farina then replied that “being in the warehouse is not right.”

“Sorry, I do not agree,” Guerreiro said. “I believe that equal opportunity is one thing, equality of outcome is another. I am in favor of equal opportunity and I am not in favor of guiding free thought in a particular direction, i.e. the suggestion that certain authors be mentioned in works simply because they are women. The mention of the best authors, whether they are men or women or any kind Else, I don’t care. So I’m voting against it.”

Afterwards, Chancellor Maria Theresa Assis Mora explained: “The intent is to highlight those women who are unseen, who know they exist.” “They are usually men, but there are women. It is not about giving women more rights, but so that they can have a greater vision.”

At the end of the discussion, the counselor also suggested: “Benefiting from the fact that we are taking this historic step, why not also include blacks, browns, people with physical disabilities and transgender people in this repository? I think they are all minorities that also need more visibility.”

Guerreiro was the only vote against the motion. Earlier, at the beginning of the session, the head of the CNJ and STF, Minister Luiz Fux, gave a long speech in defense of the rights of female judges, citing the issue of Afghanistan, and that the Observatory would invite these judges to participate in its projects.

“The National Council of Journalists is an essential ‘place’ to establish this space for reception, dialogue, and work for the benefit of these judges,” she said. “In the case of Afghanistan, the least we can guarantee to those who previously had the courage to impose sanctions on the promoters of terrorism so that the dress, the dress associated with the state of the judge, is as honorable as the turban that symbolizes the millennium tradition.”

Fox also quoted a poem by Maya Angelou, one of the most important black activists in the United States: “You can tell me from history, you can throw sharp words at me, tear your eyes, and you can kill me in the name of hate. But with that, like air, I’ll wake up.”

Last year, the National Council of Journalists approved another measure aimed at expanding women’s participation – it recommended to courts across the country the same number of women and men in the composition of boards and competition committees that select judges (Video below).