For João Pedro and George Floyd
Welcome to the first official newsletter of Coisa de Preta. If you are receiving this newsletter, then that means you are special. I decided to launch this newsletter because I always have lots to say, write, and share about Afro-Brazilian news, activism, culture, history, and music. But I don't have one place to share this knowledge efficiently.
The newsletter is a work in progress. So please be patient with me as I find my voice.
For João Pedro and George Floyd
I'm dedicating this first newsletter to George Floyd and João Pedro. George was 46. João Pedro was 14. A policeman strangled George for nine minutes. A policeman shot 14-year-old João Pedro in the stomach during an operation where the police sprayed 70 shots into his aunt's house. Both were killed.
Just when people in the United States were realizing that police had killed another black man, Afro-Brazilians were launching coordinated digital protest on Tuesday night for João Pedro. The protest, organized by the Coalizão Negra, featured a four-hour live video and a twitter campaign.
And then Americans started protesting. When Afro-Brazilian activists started seeing those first images of a burning Minneapolis, I could sense their envy online. So many Afro-Brazilian began to ask themselves, Why Can't We Protest Like African-Americans? I think it's a logical question to ask (some don't even think we should ask the question). But it's impossible to answer this question without drawing on the culture and history of the United States and Brazil. Folha columnist Dodô Azevedo attempted to do that in his widely shared column. Black Brazil Today translated the column.
I agree with this main argument: that most Afro-Brazilians don't see themselves as belonging to a black community. But this has improved dramatically in the last 15 years. Brazil's Black Movement helped pushed through successful public policy–Affirmative Action–that led to more Afro-Brazilians recognizing themselves as part of a community.
The biggest problem with this recent debate is that the current American Black Lives Matter protests/uprisings are different than the 2014/2015 ones. Many people online (and at the protests) have noticed elements that are not typical of African-American-led protests (see this twitter feed for evidence). Some protestors have even said that "it doesn't feel right." There appears to be an attempt to co-opt the Black Lives Matter movement by anarchists who want to make it more violent and chaotic. This is question is still evolving.
Regardless, I think right now is a convenient time for Brazil's Black Movement to bring worldwide attention to the police brutality that happens in Brazil. Many of us journalists and academics have done our part by writing articles, books, and sharing social media about Brazil's police brutality (and genocide). But the issue still doesn't attract as much attention as that of America. This, despite the fact that the problem in Brazil is worse. Maybe I should write another article about police brutality in Brazil.
The photo above is from an anti-police violence protest in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
Live Interview Series with some AMAZING Afro-Brazilians in ENGLISH!
Afro-Brazilians are using the quarantine period to do all kinds of wonderful live interviews on Instagram and Youtube. So I felt inspired to start a live interview series with Afro-Brazilians in English. So for as long as we are stuck inside, I will be conducting live interviews on my Youtube Channel with some pioneering Afro-Brazilians in English every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday at 5 pm/6 pm/7 pm CST/EST/BST at youtube.com/Kiratiana.
Check out the interviews from last week
Dr. Jaqueline Gomes de Jesus explained to us transfeminismo and shared with us the results of her international study of LGBTI populations in India, Brazil and Kenya.
Marina Marçal & Ananda King shared with us their journey to becoming extremely successful black women in Brazil.
Dr. Allyne Andrade e Silva defined Brazil's Black Genocide. In this 1.5 interview, I finally understand that Brazil's Black Genocide is not limited to police violence.
The line-up for this week
Tuesday - Durval Arantes runs what is likely the most influential Black Brazilian Facebook group on the Internet—intelectualidades Afro-Brasileiras. We're going to talk about what it means to be a CONSCIOUS Black Man on the Internet. We will also touch on the recent protests in Brazil and the United States.
Wednesday - The word Quilombo represents freedom and independence for Black Brazilians. But it is also the name of a type of black community found throughout Brazil. In my conversation with Davi Pereira Junior, who is from a quilombo in Maranhão, we are going to learn about the plight of Brazil's quilombos and their fight against eradication in Brazil.
Thursday - Humberto Baltar created the collective, Pais Pretos Presentes (Present Black Fathers) and were going to talk about his experience of being a black father in Brazil.
Coronavirus & Afro-Brazilians
Right now, I'm researching an article on how Coronavirus is impacting Afro-Brazilians. The information coming from Brazilian publications has been limited. If you know any black doctors in Brazil, I would love to talk to them!
Here are some recently headlines (and summaries of the articles). The info out there is still sparse.
Data Shows that Coronavirus is more lethal among Blacks | Folha de São Paulo
Although Afro-Brazilians represent 1 in 4 of Brazilians hospitalized with Acute Respiratory Syndrome (23.1%), but they represent 1 in three of those killed by Covid-19 (32.8). With whites, it is the opposite: they make up 73.9% of those hospitalized but 64.5% of those dead.
The article above is from early April so the info has definitely changed.
In a period of two weeks, the number of blacks killed by coronavirus is five times higher in Brazil | Carta Capital
In two weeks, the number of black people dying for Covid-19 in Brazil has increased fivefold. From April 11 to 26, deaths of black patients confirmed by the Federal Government were from just over 180 to more than 930. In addition, the number of black Brazilians hospitalized for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) caused by coronavirus increased to 5, 5 times.
The increase in deaths of white patients was much lower: in the same two weeks, the number reached just over three times. And the number of hospitalized white Brazilians has increased in a similar proportion.
This live below will be conducted in English. Check it out, and I will report more info next week!
Go HERE to share your interest in this event on Facebook.
Music Finds of the Week
Brazilian Lo-Fi Music
The Lo-fi movement has reached Brazilian music! Thanks to Dani Styles, I have been jamming to Brazilian Lo-Fi music while working in this quarantine. This music reminds me of the chill house music from the early 2000s that often found its inspiration from Brazilian Samba Music.
Agnes Nunes
Three weeks ago, I spent an entire night diving into the music of 18-year old singer Agnes Nunes. She became famous by singing covers on Instagram and now she has 2.4 million followers. How did I not know about this singing sensation? She has 2.4 million followers on Instagram, and she's even performed at London's legendary Jazz Cafe. Here's the first English article written about her. Her album comes out 6/26.
Teresa Cristina
Do you have saudades of Roda de Sambas and some watery Brazilian beer? Teresa Cristina is a well known "interpreter" of Brazilian samba music. Interpreters are musicians who are known for singing samba classics at live shows. They keep Brazil's music alive. For the last three months, she has been hosting Instagram lives every weekday night (9pm EST). She usually chooses a person to celebrate and invites various people to talk about their music and history. It has become so popular that she finally landed her first sponsorship of her life (Original Beer, of course).
There is so much going on in Brazil, and this newsletter didn't even cover everything. So I'm sure I will see you again earlier than Thursday.