WEBVTT

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Hey guys, I'm Faheedah and today

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we're going to be talking about

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the African diaspora in Brazil

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[Humming] Freedom is...

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mine.

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Did you know that Brazil has the biggest

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African Diaspora Community
outside of Africa?

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The 2010 census in Brazil

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shows that for the first time,

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the majority of the Brazilian population

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identified as afro-descendant.

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50.7% of Brazilians.

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the equivalent of over
a hundred million people

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self-identified as black or mixed-race.

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The statistics I'm about to give you
are truly staggering.

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The trans-atlantic
slave trade as we know it

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began when the Portugese
completed the first

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trans-atlantic voyage to Brazil in 1526.

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From 1501 to 1866,

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an estimated 4.9 million enslaved Africans

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were trafficked to Brazil.

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That's nearly 40% of all slave traded

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in the trans-atlantic slave trade,

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and at least four times
the number of slaves

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that were trafficked
to the United States.

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Brazil was last country
in the Western Hemisphere

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to abolish slaver in 1888.

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Slave labour was the driving force

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behind several key industries in Brazil,

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including sugar production,

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golden diamond mining,

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cofee production and agriculture.

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As was the case across Latin-America,

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enslaved Africans in Brazil escaped

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and formed maroon settlements
called "Quilombos".

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The most famous of which was 
Quilombos dos Palmares,

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which existed for most of 
the 17th century.

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It was a relatively large Quilombo,

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with a population of several
thousands escaped slaves

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and indigenous people,

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who formed a complex
and structured society.

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At its height, it had
a population of 30,000 people

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and spanned over eleven villages,

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occupying a landmass the size of Portugal.

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The most famous afro-brazilian

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slave resistance leader was Zumbi,

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the last king of palmares,

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who led the fierce
counter-attack against the Portuguese

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forces trying to seize the Quilombo.

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Although the settlement
was captured in 1695

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and Zumbi was decapitated,

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today he is a powerful
symbol of resistance

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against slavery in Brazil
and Portuguese colonial rule.

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To this day,

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the descendants of Afro-Brazilians

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living in Quilombo settlements

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fight for the right
to their ancestral land.

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In 2018, for the first time,
a Quilombo community

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was given land titles,

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when a community of 500 people

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was formally granted

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220,000 hectares

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of Amazonian rainforest.

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A key turning point
was the Haitian Revolution,

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which ended in 1804.

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Whereby the afro-descendant
population of Haiti

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rebelled against the white French elites

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and claimed their independence,

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both from French colonial rule

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and their European slave masters.

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This sent shockwaves across Latin America,

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which were felt as far as Brazil.

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Some Afro-Brazilians even wore

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portraits of Haitian revolutionary leader,

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Jean Jacques Dessalines

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in pendants around their necks.

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However, after the collapse
of the sugar industry in Haiti,

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it was Brazil that catered
to the increased demand for sugar.

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Enslaved Africans continued to be imported

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in large numbers to the region of Byir.

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From the Haitian Revolution onwards,

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slave rebellions became
more frequent and more brutal.

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The largest rebellion occurred
in 1835 in Salvador,

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and was known
as "The Malê Uprising."

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It was orchestrated
by African-born Muslim slaves

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who intended to free
all of the slaves in Bahia.

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However, the rebellion was crushed

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and many participants
were arrested, executed,

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flogged or deported.

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Relations were tense
between enslaved Africans

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who had recently been imported

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and the enslaved Afrio-Brazilians,

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who had been born
into slavery on Brazilian soil.

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The Afro-Brazilians
were comprised of blacks

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and mulattoes who were mixed with the

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European ancestry of their slave masters.

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They were treated better,

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were more likely to be emancipated,

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often because they were
the slave master´s children

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and had great opportunity
for social mobility

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once they had been freed.

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In fact, it was not uncommon for wealthy

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free blacks and mulattoes in Brazil to

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have slaves of their own.

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It was arguably these
internal divisions that held the

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enslaved population back

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from staging a successful revolt.

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Although Brazil gained
its independence from Portugal in 1822,

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slavery wasn't formally
abolished until 1888,

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when Princess Isabel of Brazil passed
the Lei Áurea,

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The Golden Act.

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This made Brazil the last country
in the Western Hemisphere

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to abolish slavery.

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The amount of slaves
that had been trafficked to Brazil

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during the slavery era
meant that the Brazilian population

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was now majority
black and afro-descendant.

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At a time when
scientific racism was gaining popularity,

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the Brazilian government tried
to whiten the country´s racial profile.

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It implemented a tactical whitening,

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whereby from the late 1800s
to the early 1900s,

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Brazil encouraged and even subsidized

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the mass influx of white
European immigrants to Brazil.

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The countries with the
highest numbers settling in Brazil

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were Italians, Portuguese ans Spanish.

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Although this didn't eradicate
blackness from Brazil,

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it reinforced the trope that whiteness
should be aspired to

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and that marrying someone
whiter was an instrument of

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social mobility.

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In the 20th century, 
the black movement in Brazil

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gained momentum.

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A defining moment was in 1931,

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when the Frente Negra Brasileira
was formed.

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the first black political party in Brazil,

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organized by Arlindo Vega dos Santos.

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The party put forward candidates
for political office,

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run literacy classes,
health clinics and legal services

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for black communities across Brazil.

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They also published a newspaper called

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A Voz da Raça, which circulated news about

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black communities both
in Brazil and overseas.

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The party was short-lived,
however, when in 1937

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the Brazilian dictator,
Getúllio Vargas dissolved all

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political parties

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From the 1950s onwards,

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there were a number
of black social movements in Brazil

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that lobbied for black rights.

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One of the most famous
was the Unified Black Movement,

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also known as the MNU,

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founded in 1978,

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which is arguably the most influential
black organization in Brazil

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in the second half of the 20th century.

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Among things, the organization spoke out

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against police brutality,
the oppression of black women

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and discrimination against
the LGBTQ community.

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In 1995, the MNU helped organize

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the march for Zumbi

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in the capital of Brasilia.

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The event protested racism
in Brazil and also celebrated

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the anniversary
of the death of Zumbi,

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the slave resistance leader

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who was the last king of the
Quilombo dos Palmares.

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With a turnout of over
40,000 people,

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it was the largest national
black demonstration in Brazil.

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In recent years,

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social media has played a pivotal role

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in black political activism in Brazil,

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particularly amongst
afro-brazilian millennials.

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Social media platforms such as

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YouTube Instagram
and Facebook have allowed

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afro-brazilians to connect
and mobilize online.

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Social media provides a forum

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to discuss the collective struggle,

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but crucially, it has also allowed
the dissemination

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of photos and video footage

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showing police brutality
against Afro-Brazilians.

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One such example is the murder
of Cláudia da Silva Ferreira,

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who passed away in 2014,

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after a police van dragged her
down the road

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for over a thousand feet.

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The grisly incident was captured on camera

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and circulated on social media,

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sparking national outrage.

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The Black Lives Matter
movement, in particular,

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gained traction
with afro-brazilian youths,

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who coined the #vidasnegrasimportam.

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In fact, an unprecedented number of people

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self-identified as black and mixed-race

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in the 2010 Brazilian census

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shows that Brazilians
are prouder and more willing

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to claim their African heritage
than ever before.

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However, the census also brought to light

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the grave disparities between

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the distribution of wealth
amongst white

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and afro-descendant Brazilians.

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The socio-economic gap

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between white
and black Brazilians persists.

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The 2010 census found
that, in major cities,

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white Brazilians earn
2 to 3 times more than

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their black counterparts.

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The wealthiest strata
of Brazilian society remains 82%

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white and the poorest rata is 76% black.

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Afro-Brazilians have far less
access to quality education,

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health care or fair wages,

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and they are underrepresented
in the government.

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The most prominent
African derive religions in Brazil

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are candomblé and umbanda.

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Umbanda centers on the belief in spirits,

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both good and evil.

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Candomblé is derived from
the belief systems

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of a number of African ethnic groups,

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particularly, the Yorubá-Fun and Bantu,

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similar to the Orishas of Santeria

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practiced in Cuba and other regions.

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The deities of candomblé
are called "Arishas".

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Over time, they have become
syncretized with Roman Catholic saints.

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This dates back to when enslaved Africans

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were forbidden
by the European masters

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for practicing their African religions.

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And they had to do so in secret,

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under the guise of praying
to Catholic saints,

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because of the historical ties

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between candomblé and catholicism.

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Catholicism is also widely practiced

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amongst afro-brazilians.

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One afro-descendants Saint
venerated in Brazil

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is Escrava Anastásia,

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a slave woman of African
descent who is depicted

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wearing a metal facemask.

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The story goes that her
master's wife accused her

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of flirting with her husband,

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and as a punishment forced
her to wear an iron mask

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over her face for
the rest of her life,

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until she died from tetanus from

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the rusty metal.

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The biggest afro-brazilian festival

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is the Festival of Iemanjá,

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celebrated every February 2nd
in Rio Vermelho.

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The festival brings toghether
members of several religions,

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including Catholics and practitioners

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of the afro-brazilian religions,
candomblé and umbanda.

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Iemanjá is the Arisha of the sea

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and loosely corresponds
to the Cuban Arisha, Iamanha.

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It is custom to lay offerings for

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the goddess, of flowers jewelry and food.

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And of course, Brasil is famous
for its Carnaval around the world.

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There are celebrations across the country,

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but the most famous
is hosted in Rio de Janeiro,

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where over 5 million people participate in

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the street parties.

00:10:27.240 --> 00:10:30.840
One key element of the Carnaval
is the Samba music and dance,

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a clear vestige of African
influence in Brazilian culture.

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The fast footwork
of Samba dancing originated in

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the dancers practiced
by the enslaved Africans

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trafficked to Brazil.

00:10:41.584 --> 00:10:45.071
And the singing style derives from
the traditional call-and-response style

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the Africans would use to evoke their

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Arishas during religious ceremonies.

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Another afro-brazilian style of dance is

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capoeira, which combines martial arts

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moves with elements of dance and

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acrobatics to create graceful and

00:10:57.930 --> 00:10:59.049
flowing sequences.

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It's originated amongst enslaved Africans

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in Brazil who sought to hone their combat

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skills without arousing the suspicions

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of their masters.

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In 2014, it was declared
an expression of intangible cultural

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heritage by UNESCO.

00:11:12.200 --> 00:11:15.100
The Afro-Brazilian Museum,
located in São Paulo,

00:11:15.374 --> 00:11:17.550
is home to over 6,000 works

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pertaining to a afro-brazilian history,

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culture and heritage.

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It seeks to celebrate
the arts and accomplishments

00:11:24.050 --> 00:11:25.950
of Africans and Afro-Brazilians,

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and it´s the largest collection
of artifacts of Afrcian descent

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in Latin America.

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Black Awareness Day has been celebrated

00:11:33.060 --> 00:11:35.750
annually in Brazil since the year 1960.

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It's held on November 20th
to honor the live

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of afro-brazilian slave
resistance fighter, Zumbi.

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Famous afro-brazilians
include the footballers

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Pelé and Ronaldinho,

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the scholar and politician,
Abdias do Nascimento,

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actress Suzanna Mota,

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and the politician Benedita de Silva

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she became the first black woman in the

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Brazilian center that brings me to the

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end of our video on the African Diaspora

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in Brazil for more videos don't forget

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to subscribe and follow me on instagram

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at freedom is mine official I'll see you

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in the next video

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[Music]