São Paulo Court upholds conviction for religious intolerance

The São Paulo Court of Justice (TJ-SP) has upheld the conviction of a man for inciting prejudice and violence against practitioners of African-matrix religions. The 2nd Criminal Law Chamber unanimously maintained a sentence of two years of imprisonment in an open regime, which was substituted with community service and pecuniary payments.

The defendant, who has nearly 40,000 followers on Instagram, used his social media platform to spread hateful messages, including threats of death and videos showing the destruction of a religious center (terreiro). The court rejected claims of insufficient evidence and argued that the right to freedom of expression does not cover public discrimination or the incitement of violence against vulnerable groups.

Relator Luiz Fernando Vaggione noted that the content was not merely a generic expression of opinion but contained specific discriminatory and hostile elements. The ruling emphasized that even if some videos were shared from third parties, the defendant's personal agreement and accompanying discriminatory remarks justified the conviction.