Brazilian speech therapists living in Portugal report facing significant barriers to professional licensing, a challenge deeply intertwined with broader societal prejudice against Brazilian Portuguese. Many describe this discrimination as “glottophobia,” a term that denotes bias against a language variant.
Iracema Ferreira, a Brazilian-trained speech therapist who moved to Portugal in 2020, initially attempted to continue her career but abandoned the effort when she realized the licensing process was nearly impossible for Brazilians. She switched to nursing instead. Ferreira recounted how she once brought a dictionary to nursing classes to prove that her Brazilian Portuguese vocabulary was part of the Portuguese language, countering accusations that she was not speaking “proper” Portuguese.
Licensing Challenges Reflect Wider Discrimination
Since 2019, very few Brazilians have been granted licenses to practice speech therapy in Portugal. According to the Brazilian Speech Therapists Association in Portugal (AFBP), established last year, only two Brazilians have succeeded, and one case was overturned in court after legal intervention described the initial rejection as “totally incomprehensible, illegal, and unconstitutional.”
The rejection of Brazilian speech therapists highlights a broader xenophobic climate faced by Brazil’s largest migrant community in Europe. With over 480,000 Brazilians officially residing in Portugal, some sources suggest the number may reach 628,000 by 2025. Reports of discrimination have increased alongside this growth, with racial and nationality-based complaints attributing 34% of all discrimination cases to Brazilian nationality in 2022. In 2023, over half of Brazilians living in Portugal reported experiencing discrimination, the highest proportion among all nationality groups.
Personal Accounts Reveal Prejudice in Daily Life and Education
Instances of overt hostility include a Portuguese man arrested for soliciting violence against Brazilians and a Brazilian mother’s account of her young child being physically assaulted and told to “go back to their land.” Teachers have also remarked that children were speaking too much in a “Brazilianized” manner and suggested they should receive speech therapy.
Academics note that linguistic concerns regarding Brazilian Portuguese echo past anxieties over cultural influences, such as Brazilian soap operas in the 1980s. Afrânio Barbosa from Brazil’s federal university of Rio de Janeiro explains that these reactions stem from colonial-era attitudes that question the legitimacy of language based on geography rather than the demographic realities of its speakers.
Language Variants and Licensing Requirements
Brazil and Portugal share membership in the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries, which promotes Portuguese language diffusion. Yet linguists remain divided on whether Brazilian and European Portuguese are distinct languages or regional variants. Renato Basso, a linguistics professor, emphasizes the complexity involved, noting that educated Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese are relatively similar standards, while variation also depends on regional and social factors within each country.
The licensing examinations for speech therapists have raised criticism for enforcing European Portuguese standards rigidly. Brazilian speech therapist Tanise Anhaia cited an examiner’s statement that she would not be approved because she did not speak European Portuguese. Linguist Margarita Correia described this requirement as “absurd,” although the responsible licensing body, ACSS, defended their position by questioning candidates’ knowledge of the Portuguese population and equivalence of university degrees.
Struggle for Recognition Continues
Brazilian migrants in Portugal continue to confront the challenge of having their language and culture recognized on equal terms. Journalist Álvaro Filho documented experiences of linguistic exclusion in his book, highlighting how even children are told they must “speak Portuguese” to succeed academically. The debate over whether Brazilian Portuguese should be considered an autonomous variant remains unsettled, with calls that such decisions should rest with Brazilians themselves rather than external authorities.
