Chief Cauiré Imana had succeeded in uniting many villages to destroy the Capuchin mission and expel all whites from the region between the cities of Barra do Corda and Grajaú.

[4] On October 15, 2007, tribal leader Tome Guajajara was killed during an armed invasion by woodcutters in his village, after which talks of formalizing the group began.

[5] The Guardians track illegal loggers, miners, and their camps in groups of five or more, by foot or using motorized vehicles to disrupt and deter deforestation.

[6] Loggers and extraction teams negatively impact the ecological longevity and spiritual value of the land, undermining Indigenous peoples' safety and way of life.

[8] The conflict is furthered by the interests of multinational corporations that aim to maximize profits from cheap commodities retrieved through forest extraction.

[5] Although the 1988 Brazilian Constitution grants land rights to Indigenous groups, they have been consistently excluded from the procedural process of environmental discussions.

[19][18] Guardians are eligible to enrol in a federally implemented Human Rights Defenders Protection Program, which claims to provide physical and financial security to vulnerable community members.