Marielle Franco (born Marielle Francisco da Silva; 27 July 1979 – 14 March 2018) was a Brazilian socialist and feminist who was elected to the city council of Rio de Janeiro. A prominent critic of police violence in the favelas, she was assassinated by ex-police militias in 2018.
It is not by chance that when arriving in the favelas … the police quickly hoist a [Brazilian] flag as a signal of territorial control. That is because these territories are seen … as the enemy’s territory.
The roses of resistance bloom from asphalt. We receive roses, but we will be with a clenched fist talking about our place of existence against the commands and abuses that affect our lives.
Marielle during her last speech on International Women's Day, at Rio de Janeiro's City Council, days before she was assassinated
I will not be interrupted. I will not put up with interruption from a citizen who comes here and does not know how to listen to the position of an elected woman!
Also from Marielle's last speech, shortly after a man tried to silence her by defending the military dictatorship. Original cut in Portuguese can be seen here
From a young age, Marielle stood out from the crowd. She was a natural leader at school, at the church and in the projects she took part in. She was involved in community vegetable gardens, college preparatory courses for the underprivileged and movements against violence, always with the aim of helping others. She believed that collective organization based on solidarity could change the world. Doing things for others made her feel good.
Marinete da Silva, Franco’s mother, in TIME Magazine (2018)[2]
They took Marielle from us, but they couldn't take away what Marielle means.
Fernanda Chaves, Franco's press officer who was in the car and survived the shooting that killed Franco and driver Anderson Gomes (2024)[3]
I didn't want her to be a flag, a slogan. She is missed and we really miss Mari's joy, strength, bravery, brilliance.
Pastor Henrique Vieira, a federal congressman (2024)[4]
Before Marielle was killed, not a lot of people knew of her. But now the whole world knows about her, and the truth is that, in death, Marielle was able to touch so many more people than she was when she was alive.
I think she was becoming a menace. She may have come from the bottom, but she was growing more and more influential. She defended minorities and spoke her mind fearlessly. They wanted to shut her up before she went further.
Marielle was the kind of person who was extremely confrontational with the powerful but really respectful with people in weaker positions, like, for example, the cleaning people or service people. She was such a force of nature that when I first met her, I came away a bit shaken, a bit intimidated – and I’m not someone who’s easily intimidated.
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