State of Grace: the reordering of bodies out of place through civil-racial disorder

Abstract

This article investigates the termination of parental rights of Maria das Graças de Jesus, known as Gracinha, a quilombola woman from the Toca Santa Cruz community in the city of Paulo Lopes, in the state of Santa Catarina. The “Gracinha Case” concerns the suspension of her maternal rights, based on an anonymous report and shaped by institutional racism, misogyny, elitism, and ableism. The research examines how the notion of disorder was mobilized to stereotype, dehumanize, and justify the decisions that led to her separation from her children. Through the analysis of interviews and news reports, the article discusses how racial, gender, and sexual categories structure the State’s biopolitical punishments. Black and quilombola women frequently face surveillance and control mechanisms that question their ability to mother, associating them with negative representations. The case reveals how power structures contribute to the production of inequalities, directly affecting the lives of historically marginalized subjects. Furthermore, the research engages with critical studies on race and gender, highlighting how public policies and judicial decisions can reinforce institutional violence. In this way, the article contributes to the debate on family justice, the fight against racism, quilombola women’s rights, and the intersection of race, class, and motherhood in Brazil.