A/61/335 economic, social and cultural levels, by the strength of the ideological pillar of the transatlantic slave system that lasted several centuries. Its most striking manifestation is the juxtaposition of the social, economic and political marginalization map with the map of ethnic communities in the country. The poorest communities, invisible in the structures of political and economic power, are those that have been historically discriminated against, in other words, indigenous communities and the descendants of Africans. The leading class in Brazil has long masked the reality of racism and discrimination through different ideological mechanisms and through the exploitation of culture. The most effective ideological mechanism is the concept of “racial democracy”, which, by hiding the determining nature of the racial and ethnic factor and the premise of the social interpretation of the inequalities of society, has served as the basis for the construction, through education, information and communication, of the identity and the image of a multicultural, egalitarian and democratic society. The exploitation of the heritage of multiculturalism reinforces this identity construction through the promotion of the aesthetic dimension of cultural identity, disassociated from the political heritage of the indigenous and Afro-Brazilian communities discriminated against. The ideological concealment of racism has thus produced a schizophrenic society where the political, economic and social invisibility of these communities is masked by their cultural, artistic and athletic visibility. The Special Rapporteur noted with satisfaction the political will of President Lula to question the ideological consensus of the country’s elite and to combat racism in all its dimensions and manifestations. The measures adopted in this regard are particularly significant, especially the establishment under the Office of the President of the Special Secretariat for the Promotion of Racial Equality, the development of an affirmative action programme in higher education and the reinforcement of the repression of manifestations of racism and discrimination. The credibility of these efforts to combat racism is reinforced by a regional and international dimension that the Special Rapporteur wishes to underline, namely the regional promotion of efforts to combat racism reflected in decisive action by Brazil’s drafting of the Inter-American Convention against Racism and all Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance, and the recent organization of a conference to assess the implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (see para. 32 above). However, the Special Rapporteur noted the profound political, social and intellectual resistance to these efforts, recently illustrated by the publication of a statement against affirmative action by a number of prominent intellectuals and artists. 50. In his recommendations, the Special Rapporteur essentially encourages the Brazilian Government to pursue and expand its programme to combat racism, bearing in mind its historical and cultural depth. In order to do this, he invites the Government to draft a national programme to combat racism on the basis of the most complete evaluation possible of the political, economic and social consequences of racism, with the active participation of the indigenous and AfroBrazilian communities discriminated against. He also invites the Government to generalize affirmative action policies, ensure the representation of the indigenous Amerindian population and the population of African descent in political institutions, and carry out, parallel to a political and legal strategy, an intellectual, ethical and cultural strategy to eradicate the deep roots of the racist and discriminatory culture. The Special Rapporteur formulated detailed recommendations on the basis of his conviction that decisive advances in combating 18 06-51904