Tuíre Kayapó

Tuíre Kayapó, also called Tuíra (1969 or 1970 – 10 August 2024), was a Brazilian indigenous rights activist, environmentalist, and a chief of the Kayapó people. She was active in the movement against the Belo Monte Dam project on the Xingu River in the 1980s and constitutional amendment PEC 215 in the 2010s.

Early life Tuíre's father was born in the village of Kubēnkrãkêj. He met her mother in her home village of Kokrajmoro (also spelled Kokraimoro), which was also where Tuíre was born. Her grandmother named her. Tuíre attended a meeting in Altamira, Pará, with officials from the Belo Monte Dam. She brandished her machete in the face of an official in protest of the dam's construction. taken of the event brought her name into the public consciousness.

Tuíre took her uncle's place when he died, and faced little resistance from her community, although she was one of the first women chiefs of the group.

She went to Congress to speak on behalf of the Kayapo and other indigenous groups. She also advocated for indigenous groups' access to electricity and spoke out against the expansion of mining efforts in indigenous land. She strongly criticized the passing of PL do Marco Temporal in 2023, a law which limited indigenous claims to land.

Recognition In 2020, Turkish artist and photographer Pinar Yolaçan released a film about Tuíre's life, entitled Tuire Kayapó (First Contact).'' Yolaçan and Tuíre had first met during a residency Yolaçan had in Bolivia in the late 2010s.

Personal life and death Tuíre lived in and was chief of the village of Kaprãnkrere, She was the sister of activist Paulinho Paiakan and the aunt of aspiring politician Maial Panhpunu Paiakan.

Tuíre was diagnosed with uterine cancer in 2023, and began undergoing treatment that same year.