The Philadelphia region was the site of a rare, artistic treat when Balé Folclórico, Brazil's premiere professional folk dance company made a special Black History Month visit. Formed in 1988, the 33-member troupe of dancers, musicians, and singers perform a repertory based on various Bahian folkloric dances of African origin, including: capoeira (a form of martial arts), samba and other cultural traditions celebrated during Carnival. Hailing from Salvador, in the northeastern state of Bahia, Balé Folclòrico represents Bahia's most important cultural manifestations under a contemporary theatrical vision that reflects its popular origins.
Benedita da Silva, the first black vice-governor of Rio de Janeiro, is profiled. Through her efforts to keep hope alive for impoverished Brazilians, laws were recently enacted to protect the rights of Rio's street children and domestic employees.
Brazil was discovered and, claimed by the Portuguese in 1500. By 1525, the first slave ships started to arrive. It was the first Western Hemisphere nation with slavery and it was the last (ending in 1888) to have this vile practice cease. The memories are bitter and hang over the head of this nation's history. This nation has been a sleeping giant in the global arena but is taking big steps to enter into the distinction of a First World Nation. Brazil's President Lula da Silva proudly considers himself the leader of "People of Color". He has even chastised President Barack Obama for not having enough concentration in this area. On the other hand, Brazil's bid via Rio de Janeiro was a super winner. It vowed to rebuild the slums of Rio and empower the masses. The infrastructure, job opportunities and contractual bidding would be thoroughly diverse and would make the Olympics Committee proud.
To honor our sacred heritage, to bear the burden and glory of our history, we must self-consciously resume our vanguard role in the midst of the liberation struggles of the world.
"What strikes you, your racism or me?" one of the female demonstrators wrote on her chest during the protest timed to coincide with Rio Fashion Week. "If we are buying clothes, why can't we parade in the (fashion) shows," asked a 15-year-old model taking part in the protest. "Does that mean that only white women can sell and the rest of us can only buy?" "Claiming to showcase Brazilian fashion without the real Brazilians amounts to showing Brazilian fashion (only) with white models," said Jose Flores, a 25-yearold former model who now works in advertising.
Since I have been thinking about Blacks in Brazil for years, I do know that racial identity is important and perceived differently there. For example, people who consider themselves Black or African American in the U.S. would not automatically be considered Black or African Brazilian in Brazil. People who have brown or lighter skin complexions in Brazil are mulattos, morenos, or some other non Black color category. Approximately half of Brazil's 150 million people are classified as mulatto or Black. "Pe na cozinha" means "foot in the kitchen" and "mulatinho" means "little mulatto." "Foot in the kitchen" refers to someone normally seen as white acknowledging his African ancestry because the kitchen is the kitchen of slavery in which Blacks served whites in all aspects of life.
Portuguese and Spanish slavers supplied the Americas with "los Negros," the Blacks. Only those young and strong, impervious to European disease and able to withstand months of torturous living packed in the cruel quarters of slave shipholds survived the middle passage. Those who arrived, stunned and malnourished, lost in a foreign land, were easy prey to the slavers. Removed from a world that had nourished them, left to the mercy of those whose own lack of humanity prevented the recognition of theirs, they were utterly dependent and at the mercy of their captors. Vestiges of racism threaten to dismantle further progress in South America, as they do here. The prophecies of Willie Lynch, a slave owner who created a divisive plan to keep Blacks separate by fostering dissent among them, are coming true. Lynch outlined the differences in physical characteristics among the slaves-skin shade, hair texture, height, etc. By playing up these differences, Lynch promised, "The Black slave, after receiving this indoctrination, shall carry on and will become self-refueling and self-generating for hundreds of years, maybe thousands." Throughout North and South America, Lynch's plan lives on. Color lines rule, with the predominantly European strains remaining in power, and those of darker skin and crisper hair texture continue to be oppressed. It is a chilling reality that echoes down from the brutal suppression of the native peoples of Chiapas to the continued repression of Mexicans here and in their own country, to the harsh discrimination shown the Blacks of Brazil and America.
There are 38.9 million blacks in the United States. According to the 2000 census there are 75.9 million citizens of Brazil who would be classified as African American in the U.S. Since there are only 91.3 million Brazilian whites, who dominate the country, one wonders why so many blacks are living in poverty in favelas (slums).
Executive president of Integrare, Maria Hyeronides Barros DeLima, was also present, and represented Brazil as a signatory on the document. She said, "This partnership will allow Brazilian business entrepreneurs to shake hands with Americans who are way ahead and have so much to teach. Brazilians will also have a chance to enter the walls of the corporate world in Brazil and to do business globally. This is a victory for CBCF, Integrare, the Black community and natives and disabled entrepreneurs. It is definitely a global victory!"
