Abstract
This paper argues that modern urban manifestations of Afro-Brazilian struggles for justice and equality are rooted in the Zumbi-Palmares legacy, in the ongoing struggle for judicial recognition of their ancestral land rights, and in the calls for indemnity (reparations) for all surviving black rural communities known as quilombolas across Brazil. The philosophy of Quilombismo created by Brazil’s primary black activist-philosopher-scholar Abdias do Nascimento (1914-2011) serves to explain this experience. A contemporary philosophy of identity and nationhood, Quilombismo mirrors Negritude in the way it embraced transformations that erode injustice and inequality. It emerged in the post-World War II era, product of Abdias do Nascimento’s commitment to politics, power sharing, and political reform, the Black Movement, and black theater. His writings and speeches are enshrined as part of the global processes of anti-racism, justice, inclusion, and equality. The elevation of “quilombo” from its association with the original forms of maroonage to the level of philosophical thought that drives a contemporary state of being has provided impetus to date, as activism strives to maintain momentum in the face of tremendous diversity, adversity, and challenges to legitimate, rightful causes and demands. Moving beyond the historical vision of fleeing black bodies, in search of the Palmares Quilombo, an image frozen in time, this thinker has provoked dynamic perceptions of Afro-Brazilian cultural affirmations, while ensuring the survival of certain African-originated values associated with the dynamic nation of Palmares that flourished under its warrior king, the iconic Zumbi dos Palmares.
Presenters
Dawn DukeProfessor, Modern Foreign Languages and Literatures, University of Tennessee, Tennessee, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
MAROONAGE, BRAZIL, QUILOMBOLAS, LAND, RESISTANCE
