In August, Justice Gilmar Mendes of Brazil’s Supreme Court established a “Special Commission” to define the nature and limits of Indigenous rights. Indigenous peoples have refused to participate and say that it is designed to pressure them to compromise their fundamental rights in favor of economic interests seeking access to Indigenous lands.

Indigenous lawyer Kari Guajajara argued that the initiative will be remembered as the single largest act of violence against Brazil’s Indigenous communities in recent memory.

This recent assault on Indigenous rights in Brazil is also an attack on the Amazon, and it will directly fuel the devastating fires already ravaging the region, threatening the rainforest, global climate stability, and our collective wellbeing.

It is a direct attack on our shared future for the sake of short-term profits for agribusiness and extractive industries. The world should be paying close attention to the danger facing Indigenous rights in Brazil and what must be done to stop these attacks.