“Cota Não É Esmola” (which means “A Quota Is Not Charity”) is a fiery protest song by Brazilian artist Bia Ferreira. Blending soul, reggae, and spoken word, she turns her guitar into a megaphone for Brazil’s Black, favela-born population. From the very first line, Bia reminds us that school textbooks leave out harsh truths: structural racism, economic inequality, and the daily grind of being both Black and poor. The repeated chant “Cota não é esmola!” hammers home her message that affirmative-action policies are not handouts but a small step toward balancing opportunities that history has stolen.
Through the story of a young Black girl, the lyrics paint an almost cinematic timeline: walking to school because bus fare became breakfast, arriving late and being shut out, mocked by classmates, and finally dropping out to clean apartments for survival. The song then widens its lens, linking this personal struggle to centuries of enslaved nations and “cultures assassinated.” Yet the mood stays defiantly hopeful: every time one person falls, “thousands more are born,” ready to fight like modern-day samurais of the ghettos. Bia Ferreira calls listeners to listen, respect, and join the revolution so that Black voices are never silenced again—and she does it with a groove that makes the lesson unforgettable.