By Tania Salgado

Walking around the streets of Salvador I never felt unsafe. I felt uncomfortable at times when people would stare at me, and I couldn’t tell if they were staring because they could tell I’m American or because I’m a woman. I had an instance where a man was riding on his bike, and he had yelled something at me. I looked over and his eyes were stuck on me. I quickly looked away and looked down to see what I was wearing. It’s odd that it was my first instinct to see if what I was wearing was the reason he had yelled something at me.  It is an unfortunate reality for women all over the world to think what they do, say, wear could be seen as an invitation for men to comment. Maybe the man on the bike wasn’t even talking to me or catcalling me, but he had made me super uncomfortable by the way his eyes were glued on me.
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During our stay we had a lecture scheduled with Lieutenant-Colonel Denice Santiago. Unfortunately, she was unable to be there for personal reasons, so we met with Major Alcilene instead. The talk was super interesting as she explained what Ronda da Maria da Penha is. Ronda da Maria da Penha is an organization that protects women from domestic violence. It creates a bridge between security forces and civil society. She emphasized that differences aren’t a problem. It is the hierarchy of gender and race and the inequality that comes with it that is the problem. She goes on to explain that women don’t reach the top, white men do. She explains that it isn’t a problem that white men are at the top, it’s a problem that it’s always white men. This problem of a hierarchy draws back to the discussion we had in class about Afro-Brazilian feminists and White Brazilian feminists. This quote puts into perspective the hierarchy, “Although Afro-Brazilian women face daily discrimination in white and black male-dominated spaces, it is imperative to understand how racial and gendered prejudice—and even violence—have been produced by white Brazilian feminists” (Swift 2017). The idea of a hierarchy also reminds me of the talk with Clarice Mota on social disparities, racism and health inequalities in Brazil. She had mentioned that when women have miscarriages there is two ways they are handled. If you are a White woman you are treated with care and empathy. If you are a Black woman, you are not treated with the same care and are accused of self-provoking it.

Major Alcilene continues to explain the different types of violence that women face. There is physical, sexual, moral, psychological, and economical. Physical violence means applying physical harm to someone and leaving physical marks like bruises, scars, or easy to see marks. Sexual violence can be a matter of martial rape. Moral violence is similar to psychological violence in the way that words are being used to harm someone. Partners make the woman feel like they are less than and call her names and tell her things that lower her self-esteem. Economical violence consists of takings someone’s money or even any assets that they have. It doesn’t necessarily have to be monetary it can also be anything that is of property to the woman like clothes and makeup.  

According to Major Alcilene calls about domestic abuse/violence against women is the 2nd to 3rd highest call to police in Bahia. There are 22 organization in Bahia to help domestic abuse. Major Alcilene couldn’t stress enough that violence against women is a public health issue. It should be a collective job to work against battling violence against women. This made me think about how music can have an influence in people’s behavior. In an article written by Pinho, they touch on how there was a proposal in 2012 aimed to prevent public funds to pay artists who in their work supposedly demean the image of women and encourage violence against them (2020, 11). It is great that this issue is well known and that there are measures taken to prevent more violence from happening. It is the responsibility of the state to look into any reports of domestic violence because of Lei Maria da Penha.
Violence against women is a topic to be taken seriously. You are either with the victim or the oppressor and there is no in between. If you do not speak up about people who belittle women, share private explicit photos, and abuse woman then you are only contributing to the problem.
 
Sources:
Lecture on Violence against Women and Lei Maria da Penha in Brazil with Major Denice Santiago. May 24, 2024.

Lecture about Social Disparities, Racism and Health Inequalities in Brazil with Professor Clarice Mota. May 24, 2024.
 
Pinho, Osmundo. “Race and Cultural Politics in Bahia.” In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History, 2020.
 
Swift, Jaimee. 2017. “Afro-Brazilian Feminists and the Fight for Racial and Gender Inclusion - AAIHS.” 2017. https://www.aaihs.org/afro-brazilian-feminists-and-the-fight-for-racial-and-gender-inclusion/.
 

By Morgan Van Beck

As a double major in Political Science and Hispanic Studies with a minor in Latino/Latin American Studies, I thought that I had a pretty good grasp on Latin American history and culture. While this was not incorrect, I was not aware of just how complex Brazil is and how little I really knew about it. None of my Hispanic Studies classes touched upon Brazil, and aside from speaking Portuguese rather than Spanish, it has a very distinct culture and history from the rest of Latin America. What I’ve learned while living in Salvador and traveling around Bahia is that a history of repression and inequality breeds resistance, which in turn creates culture. In short, resistance is culture. 

It helps to turn back the clock to 1500 when the Portuguese first landed in Bahia and started the vicious process of colonization. This led to the forced enslavement and relocation of millions of Africans to Brazil to work on plantations and in mines (Periera 2020). Hundreds of years later, in 1888, Brazil was the last country in the western hemisphere to abolish slavery (Periera 2020). The fact that it took so long to abolish slavery shows how integral it was to the Brazilian economy and how many salves suffered. Salvador is the city in Brazil with the highest percentage of the population being Afro-Brazilian. “Bahia is a state marked by racial inequality,” but it is also marked by a strong presence of traditions of African origin (Pinho 2020, 1). While in Salvador, we saw not only this inequality, but also many cultural elements that sprouted from African traditions and were preserved as a form of resistance. 

A prime example of resistance is salve revolts and the formation of quilombos. While in Minnesota, we learned about historic slave revolts in Bahia and about the quilombo communities that were formed by escaped slaves (dos Santos 2024). Quilombos had contact with the outside world and actively traded, but they were also perfect microcosms to preserve African traditions and resist the cultural impositions of the Europeans. We visited Quilombo Kaonge while in Brazil and were able to see for ourselves how the descendants of escaped slaves maintained the traditional practices that their ancestors preserved. We had the opportunity to learn about the cough syrup and palm oil that they produce and to learn from them about the importance of resisting cultural imposition. 

Carnival might be Brazil’s most famous event. People around the world know what carnival is, but they don’t know where it came from. Carnival has roots in African music, dance, and performance, and when we went to the carnival museum, we learned all about the lesser-known African history (at least for people in the US) of carnival. At the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century, whites were threatened by African cultural elements in carnival and did their best to “civilize” carnival by emphasizing more European elements (Pinho 2020, 7). However, carnival still retains its African influence. This pattern repeats across Brazilian cultural elements. In response to repression by white elites, Afro-Brazilians resisted and preserved their African-rooted traditions while creating a rich Brazilian culture.

Another example of resistance becoming culture is the practice of candomblé. Candomblé is a religion brought to Brazil by slaves from Africa. We were first introduced to it in the book Crooked Plow, where many of the characters actively practiced candomblé (Vieira Junior 2019). Honestly, I didn’t entirely understand candomblé while we were reading the book back in Minnesota, but since being here, we have had a chance to learn a lot more about the religion that is also a symbol of resistance. Rather than submit to pressure by the Catholic church, African slaves were able to preserve their rich religious history. Now, Candomblé is celebrated as part of Bahian identity. We saw statues of orishas on our ride from the airport and now, after visiting various candomblé temples and hearing lectures about it, we have come to understand just how important it is to life here. ​

Brazilian music and dance are also heavily influenced by African traditions brought by slaves and preserved as a form of resistance. Now, Afro-Brazilians honor and remember their ancestors by continuing to learn these styles of music and dance. We were lucky enough to participate in a samba class, where we immediately noticed strong African rhythms and drumming in the music. We also went to a percussion workshop with Mario Pam, who taught us that drumming and music were not only used as tools of resistance by slaves and their immediate descendants, but by modern Brazilians as well. Afro-Brazilians today are still using music to express themselves and decry the inequalities that they suffer. This means that modern culture is still being shaped by Afro-Brazilian resistance.

Like percussive music and samba dancing, capoeira is another distinctive element of Brazilian culture that has its roots in African traditions. Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art with elements of dance, music, and acrobatics. It exists today because of efforts by Afro-Brazilians to preserve and promote their culture and heritage. Before coming to Brazil, I had no clue what capoeira was, but now, I see it everywhere. We participated in two Capoeira workshops (one in Salvador and one in Lencois) and saw it performed as part of a folkloric ballet. However, its pervasiveness in culture means that we’ve also seen people doing capoeira at the beach, in parks, and in other public places. It’s just one more element of popular Brazilian culture that comes from resistance efforts by slaves and their descendants.  

​After nearly three weeks in Brazil, one of the things that I noticed the most was the prevalence of Afro-Brazilian resistance, which forms critical parts of Brazilian culture. Almost every day we saw examples of it, and they were not limited to the subjects I discussed above. We also saw Afro-Brazilian resistance in educational institutions, graffiti/street art, and so many other things. Race, inequality, and culture are all woven together into a complex knot. The oppression and inequality that Black Brazilians faced led them to create a rich culture of resistance that they are still contributing to today as inequality and racism continue to take new forms. Brazilian culture is distinctly marked by African traditions introduced by slavery, and it would not be the same without them. Therefore, to fully appreciate Brazilian culture, we need to understand its roots in African tradition and Afro-Brazilian resistance. 

Sources:
Dos Santos, Pedro. “Slave Revolts in Bahia.” YouTube. Uploaded by Pedro dos Santos, 13 February 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WO_syIfkYVQ.

Pereira, Anthony. Modern Brazil a very short introduction. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 2020.
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Pinho, Osmundo. “Race and Cultural Politics in Bahia.” In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History, 2020.
 
Vieira Junior, Itamar. Crooked Plow. Verso Books, 2019. 

Morgan Van Beck is a senior Political Science and Hispanic Studies double major with a minor in Latino/Latin American Studies. She is originally from Sartell, Minnesota. Morgan's most formative educational experience was traveling around Guatemala with the Guatemala Human Rights Commission, which inspired the theme of her senior distinguished thesis: human rights abuses in post-conflict societies. Morgan recently received a Fulbright grant to teach English in Colombia and will be moving there shortly after graduation. ​

​By: Alaina Rivero

​After leaving Pina we walked over to our next meeting spot where there is a huge red plant on the table, a large silver bowl, and next to the table a cylinder-shaped stand with a wooden bowl on top and a stick. Here they showed us how to make palm oil, the traditional oil native to Brazil and used in many popular dishes. We got to help them with this processes, first we took the seeds of the plant and put them in a bowl to cook then we transferred them into the large wooden bowl and smashed them with a wooden stick. Next, we dumped that mixture into water and started to remove the seeds and create a foam like texture in the water, by moving the liquid around in a fast motion. Lastly the foam was taken out and put into a separate bowl and cooked over the fire, to create the oil like texture

​Lastly, we walked across the road to this pavilion where our next meeting point was at, here we met Ananias. He knew a lot of information on the background of the culture and where it all started. He began to go on and talk about how he spoke to a school about his model and his plan to keep this away from the government so that it stays local to the community, and they don’t have to experience pharmaceutical companies teaming up with cartels to try and take over their traditions. As he spoke to the students they started to question why they’re still in college and wondered what they could do to help. The students learn that if the government were to get involved this model won’t succeed. Coming up with new projects/models to continue the traditions and natural remedies that originated in their community. 

​Overall, our visit to Cachoiera was both informative and eye-opening to me because I plan to go into the pharmaceutical sales business. This experience gave me a completely different perspective on medicine, and I have a better understanding on why communities like this want to keep natural remedies away from government power. This model is a cultural tradition that has been passed down from ancestor to ancestor for many years, keeping this tradition alive is what they live for, and a full-time job for many of them. Some final questions I still have are, how do natural remedies affect the political side of things in Brazil? And what does the government think of them? Are they losing money? Do they know that things like this still exist? Do they care?

By Alexa C. DeLeon

The discussion about women’s reality in Brazil captivated me during class and stood out as one of my favorite lectures while in Salvador. The difficulties women face can be challenging, but can you imagine the impact of intersecting identities on women, the violence women must endure, and the underrepresentation of black women in normalized job sectors?

During class we discussed the struggles black women must endure in Brazil. We Black Women Have to Kill a Lion Everyday a reading for class defined the concept of intersectionality as being used to analyze and understand how multiple forms of identity and oppression interact to shape life experiences of marginalized groups. Grasping the daily struggles these women face is essential for fostering understanding and empathy. Recognizing that white women have greater advantages than black women underscore the urgency of addressing these disparities.

 In Salvador, the lecture with Professor Clarice helped me understand the brutal reality black women experience. She mentioned how one of her black friends was a professor and she was questioned several times as it was surprising to be a black woman with a job in education. I specifically remember hearing how she was often confused as a cleaning lady because those are the type of jobs suited for black Afro-Brazilian women. 

During my time in Salvador, I became very observant of who occupied specific jobs. What stood out to me was that my host sister, a white Brazilian, worked from home as an architect, while the helper who cooked and cleaned the apartment was of darker complexion. Although my host family treated her with respect, the division of labor based on skin color is very common in Brazil. On the streets, the people selling food, beverages, or clothes were often Afro-Brazilians.
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The struggles faced by black Brazilian women were further highlighted during our discussion on women's reality and the Lei Maria da Penha in Brazil. The speaker explained how Maria da Penha became an inspiration to many women due to her status. This law is a powerful example, demonstrating that anyone can seek help regardless of race or social status. Our class also explored the correlation between race and social status, noting that Afro-Brazilians are often part of the lower class in “Race and Cultural Politics in Bahia.” Since Maria da Penha serves as an example for women to speak up, it is crucial for women to understand that their marginalized identities should not prevent them from attaining justice, especially concerning violence against women.

Violence against women was a topic that deeply resonated with me. As a woman, it was alarming to realize that I could be an easy target in Brazil simply because of my gender. Hearing about the challenges women face in class, observing the roles of women in Salvador, and experiencing these realities firsthand, I have become acutely aware of how one's identity as a woman, especially as an Afro-Brazilian woman, can be both a burden and a catalyst for change. Afro-Brazilian women endure the most due to their intersecting identities, yet they are also the ones who break stigmas and fight for a more just world.

Overall, the class prepared me well to understand the harsh reality faced by black Brazilian women. My time in Salvador further emphasized the need for advocacy for Afro-Brazilian women and the pursuit of a more just society. Reflecting on our class discussions and readings, understanding structural racism was crucial for comprehending the struggles women of color endure and fostering greater empathy for them. Violence against black women is not limited to physical harm; it also includes their lack of access to the same opportunities and resources as men and other women. One key takeaway from this experience is that discussing the systemic issues affecting specific groups can help raise awareness and drive the necessary changes.


Sources:
Carillo, Ian. “Racialized Organizations and Color-Blind Racial Ideology in Brazil.” Sociology of Race and ethnicity 7, 1 (2021).

Hogan, Vijaya K., Edna M. de Araujo, Kia L. Caldwell, Sarah N. Gonzalez-Nahm, and Kristin Z. Black. “‘We Black Women Have to Kill a Lion Everyday’: An Intersectional Analysis of Racism and Social Determinants of Health in Brazil.” Social Science & Medicine, The role of Racism in Health Inequalities: Integrating Approaches from Across Disciplines, 199 (February 1, 2018): 96–105

Lecture on “Women’s reality and Lei Maria da Penha in Brazil” (May 24, 2024).

Lecture about Racism and Health in Brazil with Prof. Clarice Mota (May 24,2024).

Pinho, Osmundo. “Race and Cultural Politics in Bahia.” In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History (2020). 

In April of 2024, Dr. Flavia Biroli visited the CSB and SJU campus to present her research, part of the Global Awareness Lecture Series. 

Dr. Biroli's research on far-right politics and gender in Brazil is much needed. The study mapped and analyzed the far-right politics on gender during the government of Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022). The talk will discuss its developments considering two issues: abortion and gender-based violence. Previous research found that the degree of conflict and the actors involved vary according to the issue. Historically, disputes on abortion are contentious and involve religious actors and perspectives. The politicization of violence against women had a distinct trajectory, reaching a broader consensus expressed in legislation and policy. The convergence between conservative religious activism and the far-right affected these dynamics – not only in Brazil or Latin America, as studies on Eastern/Central Europe identify similar displacements. Still, far-right politics activates distinct mechanisms to block feminist politics in these two issues. I discuss these mechanisms, connecting them to the disputes over democratic institutions and values. Based on that, I make the point that there is a tight connection between the struggles over gender and the present and future of liberal democracies.

Below is her talk:

By Lily Fredericks, Brianna Kreft, and Hailee Thayer

​If we had a soundtrack of our trip to Rio de Janeiro, “Girl From Rio” by Anitta would be the main track. We felt like main characters throughout our week there, especially when we were able to find our own way in the city and figure things out for ourselves. However, there were definitely times where we felt like the quintessential dumb Americans, such as when we looked like deer in the headlights when people tried to speak to us, when we couldn’t tell the uber driver where we were going, or when we ordered the completely wrong menu item. But we got good at laughing these things off, making the best of each situation despite often feeling out of place, and adapting to the surrounding situation and culture. Additionally, another thing that we noticed almost immediately when we stepped foot in Rio was that we did not get nearly as many stares and yells from people on the streets as we did in Salvador for looking so out of the ordinary. We quickly realized that this was because we actually did not look out of the ordinary in Rio where there is a much higher population of white folks than in Salvador, which has one of the highest populations of black and brown folks as we learned in class. As sad as it is, this made us feel safer than we felt in Salvador, because we were able to blend into the crowd more. We also discussed how Rio was simply more touristy than Salvador, which also could be a reason that we felt safer there. 

Perhaps one of our favorite things we did while in Rio was a backstage Carnaval tour that we booked through Airbnb experiences. Even though we thought that the more scenic and popular activities like visiting Christ the Redeemer or Sugarloaf Mountain would be the highlights of our trip, while they were still amazing, the Carnaval tour was the most memorable because we really learned more about Brazilian culture and how big of a deal this event is for many Brazilians. We got to see the behind the scenes of the workings of the Samba school that was the winner of Carnaval in 2022. We got to see the breathtaking floats, costumes, and the hard work that constitutes the year-long preparation for Carnaval. We also got to learn what each float, costume, and dance represented, and the Samba school’s theme for this year was Candomblé, which was very cool to see considering we had learned all about this religion while in Salvador. To our surprise, at the end of the tour, we got to dress up in old Carnaval costumes and even dance with a professional Samba dancer. It was very fun, and we were able to let loose a bit, even in the company of strangers. Learning the details of what goes into Carnaval and the meaning behind it made us appreciate it even more than we already did.
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Another favorite excursion of ours was visiting Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) and Sugarloaf Mountain. Even though it was slightly cloudy when we went up to see Christ, the views were still amazing. The statue was a lot bigger than we thought and we had to take pictures at a low angle to get him in it. While we were up there, we saw a group of men trying to take a picture. Like the nice Minnesota people we are, we offered to take one of them. They then offered to take one of us. We thought it would just be one and done, but this man proceeds to take individual pictures of us, even laying on the ground to get the right angle, and even posing us. Needless to say, we were surprised. The pictures turned out great and we are forever grateful for that man. We had better weather for Sugarloaf, though. We had booked a gondola ride to go all the way up the mountain. The views from the gondola were incredible, even if they packed us into the car like sardines. We were very surprised when the gondola moved as fast as it did, the longest stretch took only a few minutes to get up there. When we were at the first stop, we saw people rock climbing up the mountain. We had to look away because the height made us nervous for the climbers. Then at the second and final stop, we found it amazing that we could see the entire city of Rio. It seemed like the Cariocas were very proud of their city and there were many native Brazilians taking in the sites as well as tourists.

​On our second or third night in the city, we were finally able to meet up with Lucia, who had generously been giving us very helpful advice about the city for some time. We had great conversations about culture in Rio and she was able to tell us about her life and her family, so it was fun to be able to see what life in Rio was like for her. We then attended the Flamengo basketball championship game. This was sort of nerve racking to us at first because there were a lot of yelling men and people in general, but once we got settled into our seats, we enjoyed ourselves and cheered the team on with the rest of the crowd. We had to move seats once because a group of guys kept looking at us up and down and trying to talk to us, and we just wanted to be able to see the game. Lucia and Pedro mentioned to us that the crowd would be mostly men, so we were not really surprised that this happened. But it was really interesting to see how much less popular basketball is in Brazil as this was a championship game yet only half the arena was full. However, the fans that were there were dedicated and relentless with their cheering, which was a fun thing to experience

​On one of our last days, we visited both the Lapa stairs and the Cafeteria Colombo. The stairs were a very cool site to see and take pictures of, as they were entirely made up of colored tiles from around the world. We even saw an MN painted tile. There were also other very random tiles from cities across the U.S. as well as American popstars and American Universities. The whole time we were wondering how these tiles got here and what it took for one to get to place a tile on the stairs. We were also surprised by just how many people were visiting the stairs that day. We are not sure why, but we sort of thought that they would not be crowded at all. However, we realized that in a city as big as Rio, there are not many places that are vacant. Next, we went to the Cafeteria Colombo which Lucia told us was built in the 1800’s. The interior gave us very European vibes, which we thought was interesting, and we were able to sit down and get a cup of fancy coffee. In looking around, we could tell that this was sort of a tourist spot but also most likely a place for more wealthy Brazilians to come, as the prices were higher than we were used to seeing and people seemed to be dressed nice. 

​While our time in Rio was amazing and very smooth, our journey home was anything but. With multiple flight changes and a 12-hour delay in Sao Paulo, we had a lot of time to reflect on our trip to Rio and our time in Brazil as a whole. All three of us enjoyed our time immensely, not only doing the fun touristy stuff but more importantly, taking part in activities that taught us about Brazilian culture and  history. We will forever be dreaming of Brazilian coffee, will forever remember the cultural importance of Capoeira, and of course, will forever be hunting for our next caipirinha.

​Lily: I think what I learned most of all in Rio was how to be truly independent and how to be flexible when things do not go as you planned them. In Rio, we no longer had things being planned for us at every step in our day like we did in Salvador. We had to figure out what we wanted to do, how we were going to get there, and what we needed to do to prepare for this on our own – all in a new country and one of the biggest cities in the world. Additionally, there was at least one thing each day that threw a wrench in our plans. Perhaps things did not go at all how we expected, our plans were forced to change, we couldn’t communicate with someone, or we simply couldn’t find a destination. In any case, we were able to change our plans and make the most of our time in Rio regardless of the several roadblocks we experienced. I can honestly say I am very proud of us as three white girls from Minnesota who were able to successfully navigate a foreign city in our own and flourish in the process. Overall while in Brazil, however, I learned to have a new massive appreciation for a culture I never thought I would get to experience in a million years. I think I can take back certain aspects that are characteristic of many Brazilians such as being forward with one’s feelings, dancing like nobody is watching, eating all sorts of different foods together, and even hugging my loved ones every chance I get. Brazil may seem like such a faraway place coming from the U.S. that is seen as a great Western power. It may also seem like it was only a small part of my experience in life, but Brazil is a huge country full of such interesting people that have called it home their whole lives and are proud to be Brazilian. I will forever maintain the connection I made with my host mom, and I really hope to go back to Salvador and visit her one day because she taught me so much.

​Bri: The most important lesson I took away from our trip to Rio is the importance of stepping out of your comfort zone. While the study abroad trip as a whole taught me this, I really thought about this after our time in Rio. During the program in Salvador, we were with a group of twenty students, two professors, host families, and of course, Clara Ramos. Our days were very detailed and well-planned out. Rio was the exact opposite. We had to plan our days ourselves, and Lucia and Pedro could only help via WhatsApp. This threw me out of my comfort zone. Yet, this is what I appreciated most about the Rio trip. We were forced to learn how to navigate the language barrier by ourselves, come up with a reasonable schedule, create alternative plans when weather became a problem, and explore a new city all on our own. I am very glad we ended our time in Brazil with a trip to Rio, because it gave me an opportunity to step out of comfort zone and learn more about what I am capable of. 

​Hailee: Overall, the program taught me many lessons, one being adaptability. I’m sure that the other two have written about this, but it was such an important lesson to learn and keep. There were times, even when things were planned for us in Salvador, when something would change our plans. I could either loosen up and go with the flow or I could resist and end up angry or stressed.  I quickly learned that it was better to go with the flow and roll with the punches. In Rio, our boat tour kept getting pushed back or cancelled. We found different things around the area to keep us busy while we waited for the tour guide to respond. Our plans changed many times throughout the day, and it was a great lesson in adaptability and international travel in general. I would say that I’ve changed as a person just from these lessons. I am much more adaptable to situations, and I have a wider worldview just from living in a different country and then comparing two cities within that country. I am super grateful for this program and the experiences it provided me. I met so many great people (like my host parents) and made so many amazing memories that I wouldn’t have otherwise. 

By Kate McGlinch

In studying race, gender and inequality in Brazil, it is impossible to not recognize the structural and interpersonal violence against minority groups in the country. The multilayered discrimination against black Brazilians has sprawled across history and recent times. Coming from the United States, these issues were not unfamiliar to me; During our trip, ten black people in Buffalo, New York were shot to death in a supermarket in a racially-motivated hate crime.

Hateful ideologies feed into many instances of interpersonal violence like this which are, essentially, swept under the rug by the institutions and individuals holding power. Colorblind legislation allows for problems to be “fixed” without being fully addressed or validated. These things happen in both the United States and Brazil.

But while I am fully aware of these issues in the U.S., I had much to learn while studying abroad. Before embarking on our trip, our class read about the history of race relations and the so-called racial democracy of Brazil. We were visited by Ian Carrillo, who had conducted ethnography on how color-blindness manifests today in Brazil’s sugar-ethanol industries, among many other scholars both in-person and virtually. In his article describing his studies, Carrillo identified racial democracy as the portrayal of “centuries of slavery and sharecropping through a nostalgic lens in which masters enjoyed cordial relations with enslaved peoples. Rather than abhorring the power inequalities inherent in the denial of human freedom, racial democracy romanticizes paternalistic relations'' (Carrillo, 58).

I found this elaboration helpful in understanding the public reception of Mestiçagem and Freyre’s theories. Looking at the centuries of slavery and harsh oppression of Afro-Brazilians in this way seems to have provided the people perpetuating it with an escape hatch from guilt or accountability. Meanwhile the racism that continues today, though veiled, remains just as violent and repressive.

We also read chapters from “The Politics of Blackness: Racial Identity and Political Behavior in Contemporary Brazil”, which provided a comprehensive examination into how the identities of Brazilians interact with their political behaviors. In its conclusion, it is stated that “discussion on the role that violence plays in maintaining an Afro-Paradise where foreigners celebrate exotic black bodies at the same time that the state destroys these bodies through terror and killing, highlights how state actors create racial categories for economic and social gain. Exclusion and discrimination are violent” (Mitchell-Walthour, 222). I found this to be a corroboration to Carrillo’s description of color-blindness in Brazil’s institutions today.

In traveling to Brazil and observing life for different people there, I found these conclusions to be very real. While driving around Bahia, I spotted a lot of different billboards. Many promoted music while others marketed healthcare and beauty products. The differences in how these different interests were portrayed, however, seemed odd to me. While billboards for music and some beauty items included more people with darker skin tones, the billboards for healthcare almost always had just white people on them. Though pretty subtle in the grand scheme of things, these billboards seemed to reinforce the idea of higher education and employment in healthcare being more fitting for people with lighter skin. This was especially concerning to me as we had attended lectures talking about the reality of racial disparity in higher education. They emphasized that these pursuits are not “more fitting” of white Brazilians, rather, white Brazilians simply have much easier access to them.

Apart from my experiences in Salvador, the lectures played an important role in identifying institutional violence against black Brazilians. We were visited by Professor Wyllis Santos for a lecture on Afro-Brazilian religions, in which he described the actions taken by evangelical and Catholic churches to suppress Afro-Brazilian religious practices throughout history and today. While the aggressive enforcement of Catholicism happened through colonialism, evangelical pastors today have been teaming up with drug-traffickers in order to target Afro-Brazilian congregations. Additionally, militias (often populated by cops) have also joined forces with drug-traffickers in implementing restrictive power over favelas, especially in Rio, which are often majority black communities (Santos, 2022). These groups do not seem to be held accountable for their violence due to their ideologies being mostly in-line with the country’s current president.

Though this violence against black Brazilians is undeniable, the counteraction of black consciousness and empowerment seems to be supported with an equal level of determination. I was especially impressed by the work of the Pai de Santo Alcides and the Steve Biko Institute in their work for black communities in Brazil. As a practitioner of Candomble, Alcides emphasized positive work in one’s community as a principle of the religion. In his community, he started projects teaching children dental hygiene and building self-esteem in black women by teaching them how to do their hair (Alcides, 2022). The Steve Biko Institute, inspired by Steve Biko’s legacy of black consciousness and citizenship in South Africa, provides a “preparatory class for the entrance exam aimed at low-income black students - the first of its kind in Brazil” (Steve Biko Cultural Institute, 2014). Institutions like these, along with Afro-Brazilian percussion and dances in public spaces, voice opposition against racial discrimination in a sophisticated way. It seems that

Afro-Brazilians have grown more and more unapologetic for their African features, making a case for the importance of these features to Brazil itself. Whether through practicing Capoeira or creating educational opportunities for black Brazilians, there is a strong sense of empowerment in Salvador.
 
Works Cited
 
Carrillo, Ian. 2021. “Racialized Organizations and Color-Blind Racial Ideology in Brazil.” Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 7, no. 1 (January): 56–70. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649220943223.
 
Mitchell-Walthour, Gladys L. The Politics of Blackness: Racial Identity and Political Behavior in Contemporary Brazil. Cambridge Studies in Stratification Economics: Economics and Social Identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017. doi:10.1017/9781316888742.
 
Santos, Wyllis. “Candomble and Religions in Brazil.” Lecture, Instituto Clara Ramos, Salvador, BA, May 16, 2022.
 
Alcides (Pai de Santo). “The Practice of Candomble.” Lecture, Instituto Clara Ramos, Salvador, BA, May 16, 2022.
 
“Projetos: Pre-Vestibular.” Instituto Cultural Beneficente Steve Biko. Instituto Cultural Steve Biko, 2014. Accessed May 20, 2022. https://www.stevebiko.org.br/projetos

Kate McGlinch is a sophomore at CSB/SJU with a major in Political Science and a minor in Philosophy. She is from St. Paul, Minnesota. Her academic interests include justice and reformation in politics as well as policy for social issues. She looks forward to understanding Brazilian politics and culture in a more holistic way while studying abroad. 

By Julia Krystofiak and Grace Terlinden

Class inequality is very apparent throughout Brazil and was especially prevalent in the city of Salvador, Bahia. One of the most significant manifestations of this class inequality can be observed in housing disparities between the interior and the periphery of the city. The interior of the city houses most upper class and upper middle-class people in Bahia, while the periphery, or suburbs, is home to many lower middle-class and lower-class people. The dominant class status in these distinct areas is represented by available housing, the presence of retail and restaurants, and personal transportation (cars, motorcycles, etc.) among other things.
 
Our host families lived in the interior of the city in upper middle-class neighborhoods called Graça and Vitoria. The interior of the city is abundant with polished high-rise apartment buildings, shopping centers, drug stores, and restaurants. Most people in the interior of Salvador commuted through the city in their newer, personal cars or had family drivers. Their apartment buildings had doormen and maids that watched over and maintained their living spaces. Many of these buildings also had special “service” doors and elevators, representing separation by class even within the interior of the city.

Favelas are large communities often located on the outer parts of larger cities. Our tour guide, Fredi, described the favelas as unregulated communities in which the residents build their own residences and aren’t required to pay rent or any tax on their property, because they essentially have no legal right to the land. The enormous population of the favelas is what keeps the government from forcibly removing the residents but engages in discriminatory practices that keep the residents of favelas from gaining equal opportunities. The two physical distinctions of favelas that Fredi pointed out are: they are located in the outskirts of the city and far away from the “inner city” and favelas expand horizontally while the inner-city expands vertically.
 
The favela communities are typically viewed as dangerous, and the Brazilian police have tried to “pacify” these communities by increasing patrol in the neighborhoods and using other proactive policing strategies (Mitchell-Walthour 2017, 220). Policies such as these claim to be for the public good, but they are proven to be violent themselves, and have resulted in the mass killings of innocent residents (Mitchell-Walthour 2017, 220). Bolsonaro has exacerbated these tensions between racial and class groups, through fueling Brazilians fear of crime (Chagas-Bastos 2019). Recent research has supported the claim that Bolsonaro's “environment of fear” utilized in his campaign, has increased violence between social groups (Chagas-Bastos 2019). Bolsonaro’s position on race and class in general is important to understand the future of favelas and inequality as his impact lasts beyond his time in office.
 
It is important to note that these class disparities are inextricably connected to race and racism (Mitchell-Walthour 2017). Discussions about issues concerning class in Brazil often exclude the role that race plays in class disparities, likely due to the myth of mestiçagem (Mitchell-Walthour 2017, Marshall 2017). Ideas about Brazil being a racial democracy suggest that societal disparities are more related to class than race because the racial spectrum in Brazil produces a society in which racism “cannot exist” (Marshall 2017). In contrast to Freyre’s myth of mestiçagem, class status, in addition to physical features and phenotype, is used in Brazil to classify people into different racial categories (Mitchell-Walthour 2017).  Elites engage with the narrative surrounding inequality by claiming that policies that help to decrease inequalities exist only because of prejudice against elites (Carrillo 2020). This practice of victimizing themselves has subsequently made light of the real racial and economic inequalities that exist and persist because of the elites’ practices (Carrillo 2020).

References:
 
Eakin, Marshall C. 2017. " The Beautiful Game: Performing the Freyrean Vision," in Becoming Brazilians: Race and National Identity in Twentieth-Century Brazil. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316800058.

Fabrício H. Chagas-Bastos. "Political Realignment in Brazil: Jair Bolsonaro and the Right Turn". Revista de Estudios Sociales, no. 69 (2019): 92-100. https://doi.org/10.7440/res69.2019.08


Ian, Carrillo. “Racialized Organizations and Color-Blind Racial Ideology in Brazil,” Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 7 (1): 56-70. doi:10.1177/2332649220943223.

Mitchell-Walthour, Gladys L. 2017. The Politics of Blackness: Racial Identity and Political Behavior in Contemporary Brazil.”Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316888742.001.

Julia Krystofiak is going into her senior year at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University. She is pursuing a degree in political science and data analytics and hopes to attend graduate school following her undergraduate studies. She is originally from Mounds View, MN. Julia enjoys learning about gendered power structures, international relations, and civil conflict. She has been involved in multiple research projects focusing on gendered and populist rhetoric, which is extremely relevant to Brazil under Bolsonaro. She looks forward to better understanding human impact on the climate and natural world in the context of Brazil!

Grace Terlinden is a rising senior at the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John’s University, pursing degrees in English and Political Science. She is originally from Big Lake, Minnesota.
She enjoys learning about international relations through her involvement in Model United Nations. She is very excited to learn more about Brazilian politics and life in Brazil while
studying abroad.

By Eliana Schmaltz

After a quick three weeks filled to the brim with travel, tummy warming food, and good company, I finally had some time to slow down and reflect on what I have all experienced, observed, and learned. I was surrounded by people that I have known for such a short amount of time but still felt so comfortable and at home. As I sat watching the kids play at the party, my mom would circle around every so often to send more food in my direction, a lot of which she made herself for days in advance. My sister, Ana, covers for me and tells mom I ate my hot dog when I didn’t. I think the only word to describe how I was feeling was content.
 
I realized there were only moms and their kids at the birthday party. I asked Ana about this, and she said the dads typically see events like this as a waste of time. This stood out to me because Ana had emphasized how these big birthday celebrations were culturally very popular. Reflecting on my three weeks here, I realized how heavily my experience was influenced by women. I lived with my mom, Ana, and Clair. Multiple times a day our neighbor Louanna would come over as well as Mom’s daughter Amanda, Amanda’s girlfriend, and another lady that lives downstairs. While I couldn't always understand the language, I immediately could tell they were all strong, confident women. My subtopic for the course was violence against minorities. In Brazil it is estimated that one woman was affected by violence every four minutes in 2017 and an average of 13 women were murdered each day (Araujo 2021, 123). While I originally learned that this spring, the statistic became even more painful after being in Brazil. In another study, it was found that positions such as head of the family, family provider, and exacerbated sexuality are social attributes of masculinity that incite gender-based violence (Silva 2020). The literature surrounding violence against women, points to gender norms and toxic masculinity as being the driving factors of this generational and cultural violence. Looking within my household, my Mom strongly followed gender norms. On her “get to know me” form, she listed housework as her hobbies.
 
Within our apartment complex, the residents typically were middle aged and white. This didn’t surprise me seeing as we lived in a nice building and racial inequity is a major issue in Brazil. In 2006, Brazil moved slightly down in the ranking of the world's most unequal countries when it was moved from eighth to tenth (Pacheco 2008, 714). There was consistently construction going on throughout our route to ICR. Every person we saw performing manual labor throughout our three weeks was Black. Little instances like this were observable almost every day. For a country with such blatant racial inequities, it is shocking to see these issues overlooked.
 
While homicide occurs globally, we can statistically see that it happens at higher rates in Brazil than in most countries. This is especially true when we look specifically at the LGBT community. According to the World Health Statistics 2019, there were an estimated 477,000 deaths globally due to homicides in 2016. Brazil accounted for around 12.8% of this total, representing the seventh largest homicide rate in the Americas (WHO 2018). My mom's biological children and our host sister Ana are all part of the LGBT community. They do not hide it in public, which I only thought of because of the high rate of violence. The overwhelming amount of violence against minorities that I read about in the U.S. was heartbreaking to read. However, now that I have met people that fall into these vulnerable groups, I am even more disturbed by the danger. If my siblings are anxious about being a part of the statistic, they do not show it at all. If anything, their confidence within themselves seems to reflect their confidence that this violence can change too.
 
 
Araujo, Victor, and Malu A. C. Gatto. 2022. “Can Conservatism Make Women More Vulnerable to Violence?” Comparative Political Studies 55, no. 1: 122-153.
 
Pacheco, Tania. 2008. “Inequality, Environmental Injustice, and Racism in Brazil: Beyond the 
Question of Colour.” Development in Practice 18, no. 6: 713–725.
 
Silva, Andrey Ferreira da, Nadirline Pereira Gomes, Júlia Renata Fernandes de Magalhães, 
Fernanda Matheus Estrela, Anderson Reis de Sousa, Jordana Brock Carneiro. 2020. 
“Social Attributes of the Male That Suscept the Violence by Intimate Partner.” Rev Bras  
Enferm 73, no. 6 (June): 1-7.
 
World Health Organization (WHO). 2018. “World Health Statistics 2018: Monitoring Health for the SDGs.” WHO. https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2018/en/.

Eliana (Ellie) Schmaltz is a rising junior at the College of Saint Benedict. She is pursuing a degree in political science and sociology in the hopes to attend law school after graduation. After law school, she would like to be a family lawyer and give back to the community that raised her. Ellie is originally from a small town called Eden Valley located in Central Minnesota. She looks forward to learning more about Brazilian culture and experiencing everything the scenic country has to offer while studying abroad in Salvador.

By Kailee Hagl and Hailee Thayer.

Candomblé is one of many Afro-Brazilian religions that are present in Brazil. Candomblé, along with the other religions, are key aspects of Brazilian culture and heritage. To understand Candomblé, one needs to understand how it was made. Candomblé was made through syncretism. Syncretism is the “process by which elements of 1 religion are assimilated into another religion resulting in a change in the nature of the religion. It creates an entirely new religion” (Lecture on Umbanda and Candomblé, May 16, 2022). This syncretism can be seen in the Sisterhood of Good Death, which practices both Catholic and Candomblé traditions. Cachoeira (where the Sisterhood of Good Death is located) has become a major place for Candomblé and for the preservation of African culture and origins (Lecture on African Diaspora, May 19, 2022). This preservation is a key part of Candomblé because the traditions and histories are passed down to Mãe or Pai de Santo and they are tasked with keeping the information safe. We also learned that there are about an even number of women and men leading the Terreiros, which is vastly different from Catholicism where women are not allowed to be priests.

During Candomblé ceremonies, and even just on Fridays, white is typically worn. For women, a white dress is the usual, and for men, white pants and a white top is normal (Shirey 2012). Our host mom dresses in all white on Fridays along with white beads to represent Oxalá, one of the 12 Orixás. In Candomblé, practioners worship 12 spirits, or gods, called Orixás. The Orixás that are recognized in Brazil are Oxalá, Lemanjá, Xangô, Iansã, Oxóssi, Ogum, Oxum, Exú, Omulu, Nanã, Ossaim, and Oxumaré (Guess which one(s) are Hailee’s). Each Orixá is associated with a color and nature element as well as having a unique symbol.

Kailee’s Experience
I was not allowed to watch Hailee have her shells read, so I waited outside with our host parents. While waiting, I was allowed to take pictures of the outside of the Terreiro. The Terreiro is similar to a church, or place of worship. It is also referred to as a house. The walls were sculpted beautifully with the various Orixás, some finished with color and some not. Outside of the gate, the walls and sidewalk were also sculpted with the faces of the Orixás. Our host dad, Jorge, said everything was sculpted by hand, and is similar to papier mâché. He said it takes a long time to fully complete a sculpture as the details must be perfected before the paint can be added on.

I took this time to interview our dad about the positions or roles they have in this specific Terreiro of Candomblé, since they are practioners. Jorge said his role was to take videos and photos for the Terreiro. He said he also helps prepare for special occasions. Our host mom, Licia, said her role was to prepare food for the Terreiro, and most importantly to make sure the Orixás have everything they need and want. As people were walking in and out of sections of the Terreiro, Jorge and Licia were telling me which Orixás they were. It was interesting because they carried themselves and were dressed in a way that mirrored their Orixás. Finally, since outsiders were not allowed to take photos or videos of the inside of the Terreiro especially while a reading is in session, Jorge was able to show me some of the videos he had taken. Although I did get to go inside of the Terreiro before Hailee had her reading, I did not have much time to get a good look at anything, so it was awesome that Jorge had all this footage of the inside due to his role in Candomblé.

Hailee’s Experience
At the beginning of the trip, I had no idea that I would learn about Afro-Brazilian Religions. Fast forward a couple of weeks and here I am, partaking in a ritual to learn which Orixá is mine and about my life. In the weeks before this, we had a lecture with Pai Alcides about how Candomblé is practiced. He shared that before he started his journey in the religion, he would have seizures (Lecture on Candomblé Practices, May 16, 2022). Ailments like seizures are common among those who were drawn to Candomblé. Injuries or sicknesses are a way for the Orixás to communicate and pull the person towards Candomblé. Something similar was happening to me, but I was having dreams instead of sicknesses or injuries. I had multiple dreams that I was getting my shells read (the ritual I mentioned earlier). The shells are a form of divination that a Mae or Pai do Santos uses to communicate with the Orixás. I did not have just one dream either, it was multiple. The dreams were explained in my reading as a way my Orixás were ‘calling’ me to the Terreiro.

My host parents are practioners of Candomblé and took me to their Terreiro, Bábataósilé. Their Pai do Santos, Pai Mario, was the one who did my shell reading. During the reading I was told who my Orixás are and how they can affect my life. My Orixás are Xangô, Ogum, and Oxalá. Xangô is the strongest one along with Ogum. Both Orixás are warriors. Pai Mario said that these two warriors explain why I am feisty. Along with being a warrior Xangô is associated with lighting and thunder and Ogum is associated with war and iron

During the shell reading, I found out various things about my life and about previous events that happened. Through the shells, Pai Mario was able to see health problems in my family (both my grandparents had recent shoulder surgeries; they’re fine don’t worry). My Orixás were able to communicate with me through Pai Mario and said to be careful with betrayal in my life (which had happened earlier this year). There was so much that was explained in this ritual that it is hard to put it into words. After my reading, Pai Mario told me which colored beads I should have based on my Orixás. My host parents gifted me a white and red strand to represent them.

Works Cited

Pai Alcides. “Lecture on Candomblé Practices” May 16, 2022. Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.

Santos, Willys. Lecture on “Umbanda and Candomblé: The History, Tenets, and Practices” May
16, 2022, Salvador, Brazil.

Vatin, Xavier. “The African Diaspora in Bahia: A Socio-Anthropological Perspective” May 19,
2022. Cachoeira, Bahia, Brazil.

Shirey, Heather. 2012. “Candomblé Beads and Identity in Salvador Da Bahia,
Brazil.” Nova Religion: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions 16 (1): 36–60. https://doi.org/10.1525/nr.2012.16.1.36.

Kailee Hagl is a junior at CSB/SJU and is majoring in Political Science with a focus on law. She also is pursuing a minor in Hispanic Studies, as well as a minor in Latin American Studies. She is originally from Sauk Centre, Minnesota. Kailee enjoys learning about politics in other countries, social justice issues, and analyzing court cases. She looks forward to applying her experience abroad to her academics in her final year at CSB/SJU.

Hailee Thayer recently graduated from the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University with a major in Political Science and a minor in Gender Studies. She is from Prior Lake Minnesota. Hailee enjoys learning about the intersection of gender and aspects of everyday life as well as political representation. Hailee also enjoys reading in her free time and playing rugby.