International Journal of Social Science Studies Vol. 8, No. 5; September 2020 ISSN 2324-8033 E-ISSN 2324-8041 Published by Redfame Publishing URL: http://ijsss.redfame.com 89 Beyond Accessibility: The Belonging and Participation of Deaf Subjects in the Art Museum of Rio (MAR) Vanessa Bartolo Guimarães Pereira 1 , Silvia Borges Corrêa 2 & Diego Santos Vieira de Jesus 3 1 Professor and researcher of the Brazilian sign language in the Higher School of Advertising and Marketing in Rio de Janeiro (ESPM-Rio), Brazil 2 PhD in Social Sciences from the Rio de Janeiro State University (UERJ), Brazil 3 PhD in International Relations from the International Relations Institute, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (IRI / PUC-Rio), Brazil Correspondence: Diego Santos Vieira de Jesus, R. do Rosário, 90 - Centro, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, 20041-002, Brazil Received: July 29, 2020 Accepted: August 14, 2020 Available online: August 20, 2020 doi:10.11114/ijsss.v8i5.4978 URL: https://doi.org/10.11114/ijsss.v8i5.4978 Abstract Based on a Gramscian perspective on accessibility and inclusion, this article aims to analyze the actions carried out by the Art Museum of Rio (Museu de Arte do Rio, MAR, in Portuguese) that provide for the participation and belonging of deaf subjects who use the Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) in their institutional space. MAR, one of the newest museums in Rio de Janeiro, planned and implemented in the context of the revitalization process of the city’s Port Zone, stands out in the Brazilian museum scene with a management that consolidates actions aimed at guaranteeing deaf people’s linguistic rights through Libras. Keywords: belonging, accessibility, museums, deaf culture, rio de Janeiro 1. Introduction The discussion about museum’s accessibility policies in Brazil began after the creation of the 2010 National Sectorial Plan for Museums (PNSM, its acronym in Portuguese), which intended to define standards for the museum sector from 2010 to 2020. The PNSM presents accessibility as a transversal theme linked to the “Axis II – Culture, city and citizenship”. The document proposes that the museum environment should guarantee universal accessibility practices and establish as a priority guideline the development of specific technical capacities and financial resources so that museums make the necessary adaptations to meet the requirements of accessibility and environmental sustainability. At the same time, the intention was to promote critical awareness among the museums’ audience and the community where they operate (Celeste & Silveira, 2019). The Decree 8.124 / 2013 defines the duty of public and private museums to develop measures to identify aspects of environmental comfort, circulation, visual identity, expansion possibilities, physical accessibility and graphic language aimed at people with disabilities. The purpose was to create the conditions of reach for the museums’ use, for anyone, in a safe and autonomous way. In this sense, accessibility was understood as the possibility of access by all people in the environment to the maximum possible usability (Molenzani & Rocha, 2017). The 2018 National Policy on Museum Education (PNEM, its acronym in Portuguese) contributes to policies that promote respect for diversity and social participation and appreciate the relationship between society and cultural heritage. It also defines “full accessibility” as the search for overcoming the structural barriers that hinder or prevent access to museums and cultural centres, as well as other obstacles which transcend structural aspects (Brazil, 2018). Based on a Gramscian perspective on accessibility and inclusion, this work aims to analyze the actions carried out by the Art Museum of Rio (Museu de Arte do Rio, MAR, in Portuguese) that provide for the participation and belonging of deaf subjects who use the Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) in their institutional space. MAR, one of the newest museums in Rio de Janeiro, planned and implemented in the context of the revitalization process of the city’s Port Zone, stands out in the Brazilian museum scene with a management that consolidates actions aimed at guaranteeing deaf people’s linguistic rights through Libras.