Brazil's political relationship with music dates back to the banning of sambista at the beginning of the 20th century. After the criminalization of capoeira and rap, a businessman in Brazil is pushing for the banning of funk.

Back in January, 47-year-old Brazilian web designer, Marcelo Alonso submitted a proposal to outlaw funk music in the country. The proposal received over 52,000 signatures through the country's e-Citizenship portal.

While the bill doesn't explain in detail what would be banned, who would be punished and for what they would be punished for, it was approved by Senator Romário Faria (PSB-RJ). The bill suggested that drug trafficking, drug abuse, pedophilia and sex crimes take place at a higher rate at funk parties.

The proposal states (translated from Spanish):

"It is a fact and knowledge of Brazilians, spread even by various media and Internet communication media with rotten contents (sic) alerting the population to the public power of crime against the child, teenage minor and family. Public health crime of this 'false culture' called funk ."

Under Brazilian Congress, citizens are allowed to submit ideas to become a bill if they get 20,000 supportive signatures in four months, and a public hearing to discuss said idea in the Senate took place back in September.

Al Jazeera reports that following the hearing, Faria stated that the criminalization of the genre is not legally defensible "because of the right of free expression of thought, guaranteed by the Federal Constitution."

The other senators of the commission agreed with Romario and rejected the proposal on Sept. 21.

Danilo Cymrot, a doctor in criminology at the University of Sao Paulo (USP) spoke to the BBC about how this is another way some people in the country express their anti-blackness and other class issues.

"We previously witnessed other attempts to criminalize blacks, poor people and favela residents," he said. "Sambistas were associated with vagrancy; they were called vagabonds."

Back in 2010, Mayor Jose Neto of Sao Lourenco banned rap and funk in the city right before Carnival. Neto said he wanted to preserve Samba music which is widely affiliated with Carnival just like funk and rap. Anyone who was caught playing was subjected to arrest and up to six months in jail.