According to the professor, he worked on an internal project at Unisinos aimed at teaching gastronomy to students with disabilities. Despite his involvement, Gustavo says that he was not included in the piece that officially presented those responsible for the work.
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The justification, according to Gustavo, was that his profile photo was “too dark” and therefore “inappropriate”. Only his white colleagues who were involved in the project appeared at the presentation.
Who makes 'Project Thrive'?
The lawyer who advises Gustavo, Rodrigo da Silva Vernes Pinto, told the Curto News that Gustavo had started the project in March of this year. “He led and captained the entire project. In May, they asked him for a photo to share on the project's social media. In fact, the name of the post was 'Who does the Project Thrive'. When he went to see, only the two white people were leaders, and not him.”
Gustavo, who has been teaching gastronomy since 2001, reported that the rejected photo was the same one used on his Lattes CV and within the institution itself:
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Reporting differentiated treatment and reactions
Gustavo then denounced the fact as “racial discrimination”. According to him, initially the coordination of the gastronomy course at Unisinos accepted his complaint. Some time later, however, the accusation of racist treatment began “to be called into question by white people”, says Gustavo in a report made on Instagram.
“There was a certain invisibilization of the case right after the complaint and the initial reception, an attempt to put things in order. He [Gustavo] felt, given certain veiled attitudes of the institution, that there could be some type of reprisal”, he states Rodrigo da Silva Vernes Pinto.
O Curto News had access to the complaint at the Public Ministry of Labor:
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Questionharassment and moral harassment
Gustavo Correa says he asked to leave the project, preferring to carry out tasks at alternative times and spaces. The course coordinator accepted his request, but, according to the professional, began to treat him in a “totally” different way from then on.
The professor also claims that he began to suffer different forms of moral harassment within the institution, says the legal advisor. “They began to question his responsibilities and his competence as a teacher. There were some situations that even called into question his conduct with the students, until at a certain point they gave him advance notice and shut him down.”
“I sought to appeal the decision internally and Unisinos denied that there was any racist motivation, but expressly recognized the incorrect handling of the matter by the coordination. The fact is that I lost my job while the course continues as before“, said Gustavo.
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See the full report by professor Gustavo Correa Pinto:
Unisinos Clarification Note
When contacted by our report, Unisinos reaffirmed the position published in a note on its website. Read the note in full 👇🏽
Clarification note from Unisinos:
Unisinos has a strong commitment to ethnic-racial diversity and the inclusion of all people, always in line with Jesuit values and ideals, based on respect for human dignity and Christian and democratic principles. To strengthen the fight against racism in all instances, the institution created, more than 10 years ago, the Center for Afro-Brazilian and Indigenous Studies (Neabi Unisinos), whose work is recognized in the state of Rio Grande do Sul and nationally.
The University does not condone any racist act. It also informs that an investigation has already been launched into the complaint made by former professor of the Gastronomy course Gustavo Corrêa Pinto.
Unisinos informs that the dismissal of professor Gustavo Correa Pinto has no connection with the episode under investigation. The teacher's departure was part of a recurring process of restructuring based on the demands of the courses, which resulted in the dismissal of other teachers in the same period.
The University will reinforce its commitment to combating all forms of racism and prejudice and will review its internal measures.
