Brazilian 'racial accommodation', as proposed by Hanchard, partly results from the adaptation of gradually modified racist theories and ideas concerning, in particular, miscegenation, which were transformed from negative to positive as Brazil embraced its mixed race as its national identity. This attitude complied with the need to include Brazil among civilized nations and, at the same time, justify the strong presence of mixed-race people in society. The 'one-drop rule' adopted by the United States of America to define people according to their 'races', was subverted in Brazil, where one drop of 'white blood' can make an individual whiter and release him or her from the burden of being black.  
Getúlio Vargas, populist dictator (1930-1945, 1951-1954), reinforced the idea of a society without racial conflicts when constructing Brazil's external and internal image through an intensive public relations campaign that included the confirmation of samba as the Brazilian national rhythm and turning the samba parades of Carnival into the nation's most important touristic event (Levine, 1998). During his government, following the American policy of ensuring alliance with Latin American countries, American film studios discovered Brazilian culture, and the samba and Carnival were portrayed first in Walt Disney movies and later in Hollywood productions. Carmen Miranda became, with the support of the Vargas government, the muse of Brazilian culture; this was despite the actress and singer being Portuguese, white, and green-eyed - a far cry from the typical Brazilian samba girl. Nevertheless, over the following years, scholars from other countries, attracted by the international propaganda, came to Brazil in search of a racial paradise, only to find that the celebrated miscegenation did not result in political, social or economic advances for Brazilian blacks.