Demographic and socioeconomic inequalities between whites and indigenous peoples in Brazil

Cláudio S. Dias Júnior, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
Ana Paula A. Verona, University of Texas at Austin

This article describes and compares some major demographic and socioeconomic indicators between whites and indigenous populations in Brazil. Using data from the sample of the Population Census 2000 of IBGE, the fifteen Brazilian municipalities with the highest percentage of indigenous people are analyzed. Results show that the indigenous population is younger than the white one, has elevated dependence ratio, higher fertility and infant mortality, unfavorable socioeconomic conditions, such as lower education and income, and households with little access to electricity, piped water, and sewage. The fact of the indigenous population represents a significant portion of the total in the fifteen municipalities does not mean that it has demographic and socioeconomic conditions similar to those of the white population. It is likely that the white population of these municipalities has received more attention from local government, appropriating, so uneven, available resources including those coming from state and federal levels.