1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,949 Hey guys, I'm Faheedah and today 2 00:00:01,949 --> 00:00:03,526 we're going to be talking about 3 00:00:03,526 --> 00:00:05,610 the African diaspora in Brazil 4 00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:09,840 [Humming] Freedom is... 5 00:00:11,327 --> 00:00:14,427 mine. 6 00:00:15,810 --> 00:00:18,201 Did you know that Brazil has the biggest 7 00:00:18,201 --> 00:00:20,670 African Diaspora Community outside of Africa? 8 00:00:20,959 --> 00:00:23,789 The 2010 census in Brazil 9 00:00:23,789 --> 00:00:25,320 shows that for the first time, 10 00:00:25,450 --> 00:00:27,640 the majority of the Brazilian population 11 00:00:27,640 --> 00:00:29,720 identified as afro-descendant. 12 00:00:30,126 --> 00:00:32,399 50.7% of Brazilians. 13 00:00:32,532 --> 00:00:35,660 the equivalent of over a hundred million people 14 00:00:35,990 --> 00:00:38,709 self-identified as black or mixed-race. 15 00:00:38,754 --> 00:00:41,912 The statistics I'm about to give you are truly staggering. 16 00:00:41,930 --> 00:00:44,490 The trans-atlantic slave trade as we know it 17 00:00:44,490 --> 00:00:46,990 began when the Portugese completed the first 18 00:00:46,990 --> 00:00:50,640 trans-atlantic voyage to Brazil in 1526. 19 00:00:50,640 --> 00:00:53,160 From 1501 to 1866, 20 00:00:53,315 --> 00:00:56,586 an estimated 4.9 million enslaved Africans 21 00:00:56,586 --> 00:00:57,875 were trafficked to Brazil. 22 00:00:58,145 --> 00:01:00,960 That's nearly 40% of all slave traded 23 00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:02,790 in the trans-atlantic slave trade, 24 00:01:03,034 --> 00:01:05,184 and at least four times the number of slaves 25 00:01:05,184 --> 00:01:07,163 that were trafficked to the United States. 26 00:01:07,163 --> 00:01:09,903 Brazil was last country in the Western Hemisphere 27 00:01:09,903 --> 00:01:12,683 to abolish slaver in 1888. 28 00:01:12,771 --> 00:01:14,661 Slave labour was the driving force 29 00:01:14,661 --> 00:01:16,936 behind several key industries in Brazil, 30 00:01:17,077 --> 00:01:18,687 including sugar production, 31 00:01:18,687 --> 00:01:20,187 golden diamond mining, 32 00:01:20,288 --> 00:01:22,318 cofee production and agriculture. 33 00:01:22,523 --> 00:01:25,023 As was the case across Latin-America, 34 00:01:25,346 --> 00:01:27,546 enslaved Africans in Brazil escaped 35 00:01:27,546 --> 00:01:30,036 and formed maroon settlements called "Quilombos". 36 00:01:30,317 --> 00:01:33,107 The most famous of which was Quilombos dos Palmares, 37 00:01:33,283 --> 00:01:35,973 which existed for most of the 17th century. 38 00:01:36,306 --> 00:01:38,356 It was a relatively large Quilombo, 39 00:01:38,422 --> 00:01:41,289 with a population of several thousands escaped slaves 40 00:01:41,289 --> 00:01:42,489 and indigenous people, 41 00:01:42,669 --> 00:01:45,110 who formed a complex and structured society. 42 00:01:45,603 --> 00:01:49,010 At its height, it had a population of 30,000 people 43 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:51,260 and spanned over eleven villages, 44 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:54,160 occupying a landmass the size of Portugal. 45 00:01:54,490 --> 00:01:56,239 The most famous afro-brazilian 46 00:01:56,279 --> 00:01:58,379 slave resistance leader was Zumbi, 47 00:01:58,539 --> 00:02:00,139 the last king of palmares, 48 00:02:00,459 --> 00:02:03,207 who led the fierce counter-attack against the Portuguese 49 00:02:03,207 --> 00:02:05,340 forces trying to seize the Quilombo. 50 00:02:05,630 --> 00:02:08,760 Although the settlement was captured in 1695 51 00:02:08,760 --> 00:02:10,649 and Zumbi was decapitated, 52 00:02:10,919 --> 00:02:13,259 today he is a powerful symbol of resistance 53 00:02:13,259 --> 00:02:16,499 against slavery in Brazil and Portuguese colonial rule. 54 00:02:16,719 --> 00:02:17,842 To this day, 55 00:02:17,842 --> 00:02:19,829 the descendants of Afro-Brazilians 56 00:02:19,829 --> 00:02:21,519 living in Quilombo settlements 57 00:02:21,789 --> 00:02:24,030 fight for the right to their ancestral land. 58 00:02:24,460 --> 00:02:28,020 In 2018, for the first time, a Quilombo community 59 00:02:28,020 --> 00:02:29,490 was given land titles, 60 00:02:29,740 --> 00:02:32,560 when a community of 500 people 61 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:34,373 was formally granted 62 00:02:34,373 --> 00:02:37,030 220,000 hectares 63 00:02:37,030 --> 00:02:38,789 of Amazonian rainforest. 64 00:02:38,789 --> 00:02:41,310 A key turning point was the Haitian Revolution, 65 00:02:41,310 --> 00:02:43,210 which ended in 1804. 66 00:02:43,388 --> 00:02:46,030 Whereby the afro-descendant population of Haiti 67 00:02:46,030 --> 00:02:48,099 rebelled against the white French elites 68 00:02:48,099 --> 00:02:49,759 and claimed their independence, 69 00:02:50,009 --> 00:02:51,658 both from French colonial rule 70 00:02:51,658 --> 00:02:53,920 and their European slave masters. 71 00:02:54,250 --> 00:02:56,759 This sent shockwaves across Latin America, 72 00:02:56,759 --> 00:02:58,659 which were felt as far as Brazil. 73 00:02:59,114 --> 00:03:00,849 Some Afro-Brazilians even wore 74 00:03:00,849 --> 00:03:03,299 portraits of Haitian revolutionary leader, 75 00:03:03,299 --> 00:03:04,660 Jean Jacques Dessalines 76 00:03:04,660 --> 00:03:06,450 in pendants around their necks. 77 00:03:06,740 --> 00:03:10,150 However, after the collapse of the sugar industry in Haiti, 78 00:03:10,470 --> 00:03:13,810 it was Brazil that catered to the increased demand for sugar. 79 00:03:14,273 --> 00:03:16,886 Enslaved Africans continued to be imported 80 00:03:16,886 --> 00:03:19,069 in large numbers to the region of Byir. 81 00:03:19,579 --> 00:03:21,500 From the Haitian Revolution onwards, 82 00:03:21,550 --> 00:03:24,740 slave rebellions became more frequent and more brutal. 83 00:03:25,030 --> 00:03:28,699 The largest rebellion occurred in 1835 in Salvador, 84 00:03:28,789 --> 00:03:30,939 and was known as "The Malê Uprising." 85 00:03:31,149 --> 00:03:34,149 It was orchestrated by African-born Muslim slaves 86 00:03:34,149 --> 00:03:36,660 who intended to free all of the slaves in Bahia. 87 00:03:37,089 --> 00:03:38,907 However, the rebellion was crushed 88 00:03:38,907 --> 00:03:41,740 and many participants were arrested, executed, 89 00:03:41,740 --> 00:03:43,246 flogged or deported. 90 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:46,354 Relations were tense between enslaved Africans 91 00:03:46,354 --> 00:03:47,980 who had recently been imported 92 00:03:48,281 --> 00:03:50,199 and the enslaved Afrio-Brazilians, 93 00:03:50,199 --> 00:03:53,230 who had been born into slavery on Brazilian soil. 94 00:03:53,230 --> 00:03:55,312 The Afro-Brazilians were comprised of blacks 95 00:03:55,312 --> 00:03:57,099 and mulattoes who were mixed with the 96 00:03:57,099 --> 00:03:59,349 European ancestry of their slave masters. 97 00:03:59,669 --> 00:04:01,079 They were treated better, 98 00:04:01,169 --> 00:04:03,180 were more likely to be emancipated, 99 00:04:03,190 --> 00:04:05,709 often because they were the slave master´s children 100 00:04:05,709 --> 00:04:08,260 and had great opportunity for social mobility 101 00:04:08,260 --> 00:04:09,519 once they had been freed. 102 00:04:09,719 --> 00:04:12,189 In fact, it was not uncommon for wealthy 103 00:04:12,189 --> 00:04:14,139 free blacks and mulattoes in Brazil to 104 00:04:14,139 --> 00:04:15,338 have slaves of their own. 105 00:04:15,709 --> 00:04:18,537 It was arguably these internal divisions that held the 106 00:04:18,537 --> 00:04:20,170 enslaved population back 107 00:04:20,170 --> 00:04:22,269 from staging a successful revolt. 108 00:04:22,529 --> 00:04:26,090 Although Brazil gained its independence from Portugal in 1822, 109 00:04:26,650 --> 00:04:29,710 slavery wasn't formally abolished until 1888, 110 00:04:29,860 --> 00:04:33,020 when Princess Isabel of Brazil passed the Lei Áurea, 111 00:04:33,130 --> 00:04:34,240 The Golden Act. 112 00:04:34,505 --> 00:04:37,394 This made Brazil the last country in the Western Hemisphere 113 00:04:37,394 --> 00:04:38,630 to abolish slavery. 114 00:04:38,910 --> 00:04:41,690 The amount of slaves that had been trafficked to Brazil 115 00:04:41,690 --> 00:04:45,050 during the slavery era meant that the Brazilian population 116 00:04:45,050 --> 00:04:47,760 was now majority black and afro-descendant. 117 00:04:48,050 --> 00:04:51,580 At a time when scientific racism was gaining popularity, 118 00:04:51,880 --> 00:04:55,690 the Brazilian government tried to whiten the country´s racial profile. 119 00:04:56,035 --> 00:04:58,380 It implemented a tactical whitening, 120 00:04:58,380 --> 00:05:02,070 whereby from the late 1800s to the early 1900s, 121 00:05:02,290 --> 00:05:04,650 Brazil encouraged and even subsidized 122 00:05:04,650 --> 00:05:07,730 the mass influx of white European immigrants to Brazil. 123 00:05:08,150 --> 00:05:10,920 The countries with the highest numbers settling in Brazil 124 00:05:10,920 --> 00:05:13,820 were Italians, Portuguese ans Spanish. 125 00:05:13,974 --> 00:05:16,690 Although this didn't eradicate blackness from Brazil, 126 00:05:16,930 --> 00:05:20,270 it reinforced the trope that whiteness should be aspired to 127 00:05:20,270 --> 00:05:22,960 and that marrying someone whiter was an instrument of 128 00:05:22,960 --> 00:05:24,100 social mobility. 129 00:05:24,340 --> 00:05:27,370 In the 20th century, the black movement in Brazil 130 00:05:27,370 --> 00:05:28,480 gained momentum. 131 00:05:28,760 --> 00:05:31,325 A defining moment was in 1931, 132 00:05:31,325 --> 00:05:34,000 when the Frente Negra Brasileira was formed. 133 00:05:34,180 --> 00:05:36,430 the first black political party in Brazil, 134 00:05:36,690 --> 00:05:39,400 organized by Arlindo Vega dos Santos. 135 00:05:39,754 --> 00:05:42,650 The party put forward candidates for political office, 136 00:05:42,910 --> 00:05:46,320 run literacy classes, health clinics and legal services 137 00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:48,180 for black communities across Brazil. 138 00:05:48,540 --> 00:05:50,502 They also published a newspaper called 139 00:05:50,502 --> 00:05:53,410 A Voz da Raça, which circulated news about 140 00:05:53,410 --> 00:05:56,340 black communities both in Brazil and overseas. 141 00:05:56,710 --> 00:06:00,050 The party was short-lived, however, when in 1937 142 00:06:00,190 --> 00:06:03,520 the Brazilian dictator, Getúllio Vargas dissolved all 143 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:04,790 political parties 144 00:06:05,030 --> 00:06:06,780 From the 1950s onwards, 145 00:06:06,910 --> 00:06:09,630 there were a number of black social movements in Brazil 146 00:06:09,630 --> 00:06:11,370 that lobbied for black rights. 147 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:14,630 One of the most famous was the Unified Black Movement, 148 00:06:14,630 --> 00:06:16,290 also known as the MNU, 149 00:06:16,485 --> 00:06:18,406 founded in 1978, 150 00:06:18,513 --> 00:06:22,118 which is arguably the most influential black organization in Brazil 151 00:06:22,118 --> 00:06:24,310 in the second half of the 20th century. 152 00:06:24,490 --> 00:06:26,940 Among things, the organization spoke out 153 00:06:26,940 --> 00:06:30,080 against police brutality, the oppression of black women 154 00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:33,590 and discrimination against the LGBTQ community. 155 00:06:33,911 --> 00:06:36,920 In 1995, the MNU helped organize 156 00:06:36,920 --> 00:06:38,060 the march for Zumbi 157 00:06:38,060 --> 00:06:39,580 in the capital of Brasilia. 158 00:06:39,910 --> 00:06:43,540 The event protested racism in Brazil and also celebrated 159 00:06:43,540 --> 00:06:45,630 the anniversary of the death of Zumbi, 160 00:06:45,850 --> 00:06:47,220 the slave resistance leader 161 00:06:47,220 --> 00:06:49,760 who was the last king of the Quilombo dos Palmares. 162 00:06:50,140 --> 00:06:52,780 With a turnout of over 40,000 people, 163 00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:56,240 it was the largest national black demonstration in Brazil. 164 00:06:56,510 --> 00:06:57,600 In recent years, 165 00:06:57,760 --> 00:06:59,750 social media has played a pivotal role 166 00:06:59,750 --> 00:07:01,980 in black political activism in Brazil, 167 00:07:02,233 --> 00:07:04,800 particularly amongst afro-brazilian millennials. 168 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:06,700 Social media platforms such as 169 00:07:06,700 --> 00:07:09,450 YouTube Instagram and Facebook have allowed 170 00:07:09,450 --> 00:07:12,460 afro-brazilians to connect and mobilize online. 171 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:14,310 Social media provides a forum 172 00:07:14,310 --> 00:07:16,000 to discuss the collective struggle, 173 00:07:16,120 --> 00:07:18,799 but crucially, it has also allowed the dissemination 174 00:07:18,799 --> 00:07:20,660 of photos and video footage 175 00:07:20,890 --> 00:07:23,500 showing police brutality against Afro-Brazilians. 176 00:07:23,920 --> 00:07:27,719 One such example is the murder of Cláudia da Silva Ferreira, 177 00:07:27,719 --> 00:07:30,020 who passed away in 2014, 178 00:07:30,240 --> 00:07:32,680 after a police van dragged her down the road 179 00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:33,990 for over a thousand feet. 180 00:07:34,440 --> 00:07:36,679 The grisly incident was captured on camera 181 00:07:36,679 --> 00:07:38,573 and circulated on social media, 182 00:07:38,813 --> 00:07:40,510 sparking national outrage. 183 00:07:40,987 --> 00:07:43,351 The Black Lives Matter movement, in particular, 184 00:07:43,351 --> 00:07:45,690 gained traction with afro-brazilian youths, 185 00:07:45,790 --> 00:07:48,650 who coined the #vidasnegrasimportam. 186 00:07:49,059 --> 00:07:51,620 In fact, an unprecedented number of people 187 00:07:51,620 --> 00:07:53,930 self-identified as black and mixed-race 188 00:07:53,930 --> 00:07:56,510 in the 2010 Brazilian census 189 00:07:56,950 --> 00:07:59,510 shows that Brazilians are prouder and more willing 190 00:07:59,510 --> 00:08:02,050 to claim their African heritage than ever before. 191 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:04,640 However, the census also brought to light 192 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:06,370 the grave disparities between 193 00:08:06,370 --> 00:08:08,419 the distribution of wealth amongst white 194 00:08:08,419 --> 00:08:10,240 and afro-descendant Brazilians. 195 00:08:10,641 --> 00:08:12,130 The socio-economic gap 196 00:08:12,130 --> 00:08:14,660 between white and black Brazilians persists. 197 00:08:15,030 --> 00:08:18,260 The 2010 census found that, in major cities, 198 00:08:18,480 --> 00:08:21,139 white Brazilians earn 2 to 3 times more than 199 00:08:21,139 --> 00:08:22,569 their black counterparts. 200 00:08:22,889 --> 00:08:26,760 The wealthiest strata of Brazilian society remains 82% 201 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:30,549 white and the poorest rata is 76% black. 202 00:08:30,989 --> 00:08:34,599 Afro-Brazilians have far less access to quality education, 203 00:08:34,898 --> 00:08:36,670 health care or fair wages, 204 00:08:36,780 --> 00:08:39,019 and they are underrepresented in the government. 205 00:08:39,226 --> 00:08:42,190 The most prominent African derive religions in Brazil 206 00:08:42,190 --> 00:08:44,198 are candomblé and umbanda. 207 00:08:44,258 --> 00:08:46,890 Umbanda centers on the belief in spirits, 208 00:08:46,890 --> 00:08:48,300 both good and evil. 209 00:08:48,350 --> 00:08:50,880 Candomblé is derived from the belief systems 210 00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:52,870 of a number of African ethnic groups, 211 00:08:53,060 --> 00:08:55,550 particularly, the Yorubá-Fun and Bantu, 212 00:08:55,860 --> 00:08:57,660 similar to the Orishas of Santeria 213 00:08:57,660 --> 00:08:59,820 practiced in Cuba and other regions. 214 00:09:00,040 --> 00:09:02,660 The deities of candomblé are called "Arishas". 215 00:09:03,100 --> 00:09:06,430 Over time, they have become syncretized with Roman Catholic saints. 216 00:09:06,758 --> 00:09:08,949 This dates back to when enslaved Africans 217 00:09:08,949 --> 00:09:11,006 were forbidden by the European masters 218 00:09:11,006 --> 00:09:13,000 for practicing their African religions. 219 00:09:13,220 --> 00:09:15,140 And they had to do so in secret, 220 00:09:15,140 --> 00:09:17,428 under the guise of praying to Catholic saints, 221 00:09:17,888 --> 00:09:19,420 because of the historical ties 222 00:09:19,420 --> 00:09:21,570 between candomblé and catholicism. 223 00:09:21,570 --> 00:09:24,029 Catholicism is also widely practiced 224 00:09:24,029 --> 00:09:25,540 amongst afro-brazilians. 225 00:09:25,680 --> 00:09:28,720 One afro-descendants Saint venerated in Brazil 226 00:09:28,720 --> 00:09:30,450 is Escrava Anastásia, 227 00:09:30,650 --> 00:09:33,150 a slave woman of African descent who is depicted 228 00:09:33,150 --> 00:09:34,670 wearing a metal facemask. 229 00:09:34,750 --> 00:09:37,470 The story goes that her master's wife accused her 230 00:09:37,470 --> 00:09:39,000 of flirting with her husband, 231 00:09:39,300 --> 00:09:41,970 and as a punishment forced her to wear an iron mask 232 00:09:41,970 --> 00:09:43,890 over her face for the rest of her life, 233 00:09:44,100 --> 00:09:45,900 until she died from tetanus from 234 00:09:45,900 --> 00:09:46,990 the rusty metal. 235 00:09:47,190 --> 00:09:49,380 The biggest afro-brazilian festival 236 00:09:49,380 --> 00:09:51,090 is the Festival of Iemanjá, 237 00:09:51,490 --> 00:09:54,525 celebrated every February 2nd in Rio Vermelho. 238 00:09:54,835 --> 00:09:57,820 The festival brings toghether members of several religions, 239 00:09:58,090 --> 00:10:00,037 including Catholics and practitioners 240 00:10:00,037 --> 00:10:03,210 of the afro-brazilian religions, candomblé and umbanda. 241 00:10:03,615 --> 00:10:05,770 Iemanjá is the Arisha of the sea 242 00:10:05,910 --> 00:10:08,900 and loosely corresponds to the Cuban Arisha, Iamanha. 243 00:10:09,140 --> 00:10:11,010 It is custom to lay offerings for 244 00:10:11,010 --> 00:10:13,640 the goddess, of flowers jewelry and food. 245 00:10:14,270 --> 00:10:17,991 And of course, Brasil is famous for its Carnaval around the world. 246 00:10:18,242 --> 00:10:20,350 There are celebrations across the country, 247 00:10:20,350 --> 00:10:22,980 but the most famous is hosted in Rio de Janeiro, 248 00:10:23,410 --> 00:10:25,800 where over 5 million people participate in 249 00:10:25,800 --> 00:10:26,950 the street parties. 250 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:30,840 One key element of the Carnaval is the Samba music and dance, 251 00:10:31,040 --> 00:10:34,400 a clear vestige of African influence in Brazilian culture. 252 00:10:34,770 --> 00:10:37,500 The fast footwork of Samba dancing originated in 253 00:10:37,500 --> 00:10:39,980 the dancers practiced by the enslaved Africans 254 00:10:39,980 --> 00:10:41,270 trafficked to Brazil. 255 00:10:41,584 --> 00:10:45,071 And the singing style derives from the traditional call-and-response style 256 00:10:45,071 --> 00:10:46,857 the Africans would use to evoke their 257 00:10:46,857 --> 00:10:48,830 Arishas during religious ceremonies. 258 00:10:49,380 --> 00:10:51,600 Another afro-brazilian style of dance is 259 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:54,060 capoeira, which combines martial arts 260 00:10:54,060 --> 00:10:55,740 moves with elements of dance and 261 00:10:55,740 --> 00:10:57,930 acrobatics to create graceful and 262 00:10:57,930 --> 00:10:59,049 flowing sequences. 263 00:10:59,457 --> 00:11:01,626 It's originated amongst enslaved Africans 264 00:11:01,626 --> 00:11:03,600 in Brazil who sought to hone their combat 265 00:11:03,600 --> 00:11:05,520 skills without arousing the suspicions 266 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:06,620 of their masters. 267 00:11:06,880 --> 00:11:10,540 In 2014, it was declared an expression of intangible cultural 268 00:11:10,540 --> 00:11:12,030 heritage by UNESCO. 269 00:11:12,200 --> 00:11:15,100 The Afro-Brazilian Museum, located in São Paulo, 270 00:11:15,374 --> 00:11:17,550 is home to over 6,000 works 271 00:11:17,550 --> 00:11:19,620 pertaining to a afro-brazilian history, 272 00:11:19,620 --> 00:11:21,050 culture and heritage. 273 00:11:21,427 --> 00:11:24,050 It seeks to celebrate the arts and accomplishments 274 00:11:24,050 --> 00:11:25,950 of Africans and Afro-Brazilians, 275 00:11:26,200 --> 00:11:29,360 and it´s the largest collection of artifacts of Afrcian descent 276 00:11:29,360 --> 00:11:30,400 in Latin America. 277 00:11:30,920 --> 00:11:33,060 Black Awareness Day has been celebrated 278 00:11:33,060 --> 00:11:35,750 annually in Brazil since the year 1960. 279 00:11:35,930 --> 00:11:38,540 It's held on November 20th to honor the live 280 00:11:38,540 --> 00:11:41,820 of afro-brazilian slave resistance fighter, Zumbi. 281 00:11:42,090 --> 00:11:44,780 Famous afro-brazilians include the footballers 282 00:11:44,800 --> 00:11:46,240 Pelé and Ronaldinho, 283 00:11:46,605 --> 00:11:49,510 the scholar and politician, Abdias do Nascimento, 284 00:11:49,810 --> 00:11:51,340 actress Suzanna Mota, 285 00:11:51,480 --> 00:11:53,930 and the politician Benedita de Silva, 286 00:11:54,070 --> 00:11:56,860 who became the first black woman in the Brazilian Senate. 287 00:11:56,860 --> 00:11:57,880 That brings me to the 288 00:11:57,880 --> 00:12:00,750 end of our video on the African Diaspora in Brazil. 289 00:12:01,120 --> 00:12:03,460 For more videos, don't forget to subscribe 290 00:12:03,460 --> 00:12:06,250 and follow me on instagram, at freedom is mine official. 291 00:12:06,290 --> 00:12:08,240 I'll see you in the next video. 292 00:12:08,950 --> 00:12:12,950 [Music]