Entre eugenia e segregação: o Leprosário Santo Antônio do Prata sob a perspectiva da infração dos direitos humanos

Abstract

This research is a study focused on the Santo Antônio do Prata Leprosarium. Established in 1924 and located in the city of Igarapé-Açu, in the state of Pará, this leprosarium differed from others due to its isolationist model, which followed the agricultural colony type. The purpose of the institution was complex and not limited to segregating individuals affected by the disease, but also aimed to provide and subsidize conditions that would interrupt the transmission cycle of the disease within society — even if, for that purpose, people affected by leprosy had to be deprived of certain rights, such as living with their healthy children, participating in social life, among others. The methodological foundation of the research was based on bibliographic analysis, mainly of the work Lazarópolis do Prata, written by Heraclides Cesar de Souza Araújo, which is a historical source containing information about the structure and functioning of the institution. The approach was qualitative and exploratory, directed toward the interpretation of the consulted sources and the elaboration of the dissertation’s results: the construction of two independent yet complementary articles, due to the linearity of the research theme. The first article, entitled “Children of Invisibility: Prophylaxis and/or Parental Segregation”, addresses the eugenic influences associated with segregation and family separation among the healthy children of people affected by leprosy who lived in this leprosarium. The second article, entitled “Segregated Subjects: Human Rights and Leprosy Patients Victimized by Compulsory Isolation at the Santo Antônio do Prata Leprosarium”, discusses the institution from the perspective of human rights, violations of these rights, and historical reparations. The dissertation is organized in the multipaper format (a collection of articles), comprising two scientific papers, each focused on specific research objectives.