ABSTRACT
This chapter examines three critical questions related to the education of marginalized youth in Brazil: 1) To what extent did government policy from 1995-1999 prioritize the education of marginalized youth? 2) What alternative models exist for addressing their educational needs and interests? 3) What parameters can be further developed to maximize educational opportunities for this population? The research draws from a broad range of archival materials including federal/state publications, legislation, publications from nongovernmental organizations and multilateral institutions, and a set of in-depth interviews conducted over a four-year period. Youth in Brazil-a group that is unique in its characteristics, needs, and dynamics-are continuously isolated from policy discourse. In making this argument, we present three models or responses that specifically target the education of marginalized youth. Each model encompasses distinct dynamics and power relations between grassroots groups, state agencies, and the youth themselves. This analysis emerges at a time when Brazilian policymakers must negotiate a risky crossroads-they must determine the extent to which future legislation, policy and programs will faithfully adhere to neoliberal policies, which are damaging to the population targeted in this study or deviate from them. Recommendations posed herein for new collaborative forms of policy making where grassroots groups and state entities work in partnership to prioritize the educational rights of marginalized youth may offer compelling alternatives for a mediated, mitigated neoliberalism.
