By Maíra Amorim, Senior Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO – While in many countries the reality TV show Big Brother is steadily losing popularity, in Brazil the audience’s appetite just seems to get bigger each season. The tenth edition is currently on air and the housemate’s antics remain a huge subject of discussion between groups from all social backgrounds. ‘BBB10’ director Boninho decided to mix things up choosing a lesbian, a gay man and a drag queen to enter the house, along with Marcelo Dourado, a contestant from way back when in BBB4.
And there in lies the problem. Dourado, from Rio Grande do Sul, is a professional fighter and among the several tattoos adorning his body is a swastika. Outspokenly ‘not very fond’ of gays, he has said that heterosexual men do not get HIV and that he would beat up one of the girls from the house if it turned out “she was a man”. Sadly, Dourado has won numerous fans and looks like the favourite to win this year’s competition.
The Gay Movement started a campaign to take him out of the show that has now spread across the world. Even the singer Boy George has taken up the fight against Dourado, posting on his twitter; “Homophobe leads Big Brother Brazil. Come you Brazilians, vote this self obsessed queer hater off the box”.
The North-American lesbian website “After Ellen” has also published an article about it, encouraging people to vote for his removal. Meanwhile a Brazilian journalist has created a blog “Fora Dourado” (Dourado Out) pleading for his ejection.
Jean Willys, the gay winner of “BBB5”, wrote a piece about the theme in the “O Globo” newspaper declaring that putting two men and one lesbian in the show is important and represents a big step in the freedom of homosexuals. However, he doesn’t consider the “ascension” of Dourado surprising; “He was converted into the ‘hero’ of the male resistance who seeks to be against homossexualism”, he wrote.
Angélica, the lesbian, was eliminated last week, and the show’s analysts believe she was rejected by the audience after her fight with the popular Dourado. In interviews outside the house, Angélica called for gay people to unite and try not only to take him out of the show, but to use the positivity of having three homosexuals on prime time television to help confront homophobia.
On Sunday, Dourado was one of the three nominated for elimination, together with Cláudia and Lia, who is close to the fighter. After fifty days in the house and with a long way left to go, unfortunately it appears that we won’t have heard the last of Dourado whether he remains in or not.
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