Which Brazilian rainforest activist was assassinated in 1988?

The Brazilian rainforest activist assassinated in 1988 was Chico Mendes. A rubber tapper, trade-union organizer, and environmental campaigner, Mendes defended Amazonian forest communities whose livelihoods depended on collecting rubber and other products without clearing the forest.

Born Francisco Alves Mendes Filho in 1944, he became a prominent leader in Acre, a state in western Brazil. He helped organize workers against ranchers and landowners who were cutting down forests for cattle pastures. Mendes promoted “empates,” peaceful blockades in which local people stood together to prevent deforestation.

His work connected labor rights with rainforest conservation. Rather than treating the forest as land that had to be cleared, Mendes argued that communities could earn a living from its renewable resources. His ideas helped inspire the creation of extractive reserves, protected areas where local residents can sustainably harvest forest products.

Mendes had received death threats for years. On December 22, 1988, he was shot at his home in Xapuri, Acre, by Darci Alves da Silva, whose father was a rancher involved in a land conflict with Mendes. His murder drew international attention to Amazon deforestation and made him an enduring symbol of environmental and social justice.