RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — After making his way to Brazil, Uncle Sam proudly stood atop an extravagantly decorated float in Rio de Janeiro’s famous Carnival.

Too bad he forgot to bring a belt.

With his pants down around his ankles, the 12-foot Styrofoam Uncle Sam’s genitals were exposed for all of Carnival to see, and his outstretched fingers were smeared with ink — a jab at America’s fingerprinting policy for all foreign visitors.

He was looked upon by hundreds of viewers wearing Saddam Hussein masks, one of Carnival’s best-selling items.

Picking a bad time to be a tourist, Uncle Sam stood at the center of criticisms for mandatory fingerprinting, America’s newest anti-terrorism policy. He was the embodiment of Brazil’s negative attitude toward the war on terror.

Carnival, a magnified version of Mardi Gras and one of the world’s largest festivals, features elaborate dance routines, gaudy costumes and custom-written songs.

As always, there is a healthy mix of samba music and political satire.

“The life of samba can’t be separated from the life of the Brazilian country,” said professor Deia Ferreiva. “These schools love to engage in controversy.”

The big controversy at Carnival was strong anti-American sentiment. Most of the negative feelings were directed at America’s fingerprinting policy.

Uncle Sam was presented by the Sao Clemente samba school, one of 14 groups participating in the parade that hoped to win the champion’s crown.

Each school has a theme based on an aspect of Brazilian life or history, represented through allegorical displays of singing and dancing.

Though the United States wasn’t the only object of criticism — Brazilian President Ignacio Luiz Lula da Silva was depicted in other floats as failing to keep his campaign promises — America was the butt of most jokes.

Brazil and the United States have been embroiled in a dispute about compulsory fingerprinting for foreign visitors. The float flaunted this dispute, featuring Uncle Sam gagged, symbolizing a perceived U.S. clampdown on freedoms.

If that sounds too harsh, most samba schools said strong political expression is merely a staple of Carnival. “During the military dictatorship of Brazil, the samba parades were one of the only forms of free expression,” Ferreiva said. “A strong tradition of expression exists at these parades.”

Nevertheless, fingerprinting has become a touchy issue between the United States and Brazil. Since Jan. 1, Brazil required all Americans to be photographed and fingerprinted upon entering the country.

The customs requirements were imposed in response to similar U.S. rules for citizens of Brazil and other countries. Some Brazilians celebrated the response as an answer to American imperialism.

“The reason the Brazilian government does this is because reciprocity is the basic element of foreign relations: We’ll do to you what you do to us,” said Maria Fernandes, political editor of Valor Economico, a financial newspaper.

While most Americans consider fingerprinting nothing more than a small inconvenience, some have been less accommodating to the customs policy than others.

Two weeks ago, Douglas Skolnick of New Jersey was fined $17,200 for raising his middle finger while he was being photographed. On Jan. 14, American Airlines pilot Dale Robin Hirsch was arrested on similar charges. He returned home after paying a $12,750 fine.

While Brazil/U.S. tension currently exists, Fernandes said it’s nothing serious. However, she said, the Brazilian government still appreciates healthy doses of anti-Americanism.

“[President] da Silva enjoys speaking about the American government in a colloquial way,” Fernandes said. “If President Bush read the translations of his speeches, he wouldn’t be too happy.”

— The Associated Press contributed to this article.