Eunice Paiva’s grave becomes a tourist site after “I’m Still Here”
A tombstone in a little blue chapel in São Paulo’s Araçá Cemetery mentions her fondly: “A role model for her family and for Brazilian democracy.” It stands next to a number of chapels belonging to Italian families, where the lawyer and one of the symbols of the fight against the Brazilian dictatorship and for human rights, Maria Lucrécia Eunice Facciolla Paiva, better known as Eunice Paiva (1929–2018), is buried.Her story became even more famous after actress Fernanda Torres played her in the film I’m Still Here, directed by Walter Salles. Nominated for best film, best international film, and best actress at this year’s Academy Awards, the film is an adaptation of a book of the same name written by Marcelo Rubens Paiva. In it, the author tells the true story of his family, centered on hi...