Conceiving Parents, Consolidating the State: Emphasis and Erasure in the Governance of Marginal Parenthoods in Brazil

Abstract

This article examines the combination of moral regimes and bureaucratic materialities in the adoption procedures through which the Brazilian government attempts to bring adoptive parenthood under state surveillance. I argue that, faced with ambiguous laws that do not consistently outlaw informal practices, Brazil's juvenile courts rely on technological means to shore up their claim to exclusive authority over humanitarian child placements. Lists, statistics, and graphs take on central meaning in a realm that conveys the impression of transparency, technical expertise, and scientific ethics. Insistence on using these artifacts not only transmutes political options into moral certainties but also—by highlighting certain behaviors while imposing silence on others—creates zones of legal ambiguity. This allows the state's authority to remain apparently intact despite the widespread existence of practices outside the norms of orthodox courthouse procedures.