Monument to the Bandereis, Victor Brecheret, 1954, granite Who were the bandeirantes? They were 16th-17th century prospectors who traveled from Sáo Paulo to the hinterlands of Brazil in search of gold. While on these expeditions, they enslaved and killed indigenous people as well as recaptured African slaves who had escaped to the interior. What they did do to earn this monument was to increase the dominion of São Paulo to areas beyond that established by the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas. The monument has been a sore issue with the indigenous people and it came to a head in 2013 when they demonstrated in front of it and spray painted the monument with the words “ bandeirantes assassinos ”. Despite this strong message, there has not been much change on the part of the government to address the issue. In 2016, the monument was doused with red paint and graffiti. The new Mayor at that time took steps to curb these attempts to deface the monument which he described as the “symbol of the city
“If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home.” - James Michener