More about Race in Brazil

Hi all,

It´s Wednesday, which means another random musings post.

I have written before about racism and prejudice in Brazil, and I´d like to delve a bit deeper into this subject, as race is viewed a bit differently here than in the US. A comparison might prove interesting.

My students (I´m an English teacher when not commenting on social issues or hanging on the beach) Vanice and Fernando were asking me about racial attitudes in the US, where they will visit soon. Vanice asked me quite directly (Brazilians are in general a disarmingly open people) if she would be considered black in the US. Vanice, from the northeast of Brazil, has raven hair and eyes, but fair skin and caucasian features. “No,” I told her, “you don´t look black.” “Oh, so it´s the features,” she said.

Vanice then asked me if Beyonce is considered black in the US. I replied that she is. Vanice replied that Beyonce isn´t considered black here in Brazil. Neither is Alicia Keys. They are considered “mulatta,” a word which we have in English but which I can´t recall ever having heard in casual conversation. Perhaps it too is taboo in these days of political correctness.

The fact is that in the US, if it is evident that a person is in any part black, that person is typically thought of as black – or these days “African American.” I am not sure why this should be. Perhaps it dates all the way back to the days of slavery, when a person even 1/8 black could legally be considered black and a slave. (Time to reread “Uncle Tom´s Cabin”.)

Lest you think Brazilians horrible or backward for using words like “mulatta”, know that it is a crime here to call someone “preto”, which translates as “black” (as in the city Ouro Preto, or Black Gold), but which typically is reserved for things, not people. It´s OK to refer to someone as “negro” though. This term has long een out of favor in the US. The result is that each term is acceptable in one country, the other not.

Brazilians seem much more comfortable discussing race than Americans -  at least Americans of my generation. They don´t understand our squirminess on the subject.

I don´t want to give the idea that all is peaches and cream here or that there is equal opportunity in Brazil. It isn´t and there isn´t. Blacks are unrepresented in universities and overrepresented among the poor, as they are in the US and virtually every other country. What Brazil has is a pretty comfortable racial coexistence. I have often here been in situations where I was the only white guy present, and believe me when I say that I feel much more comfortable in that situation here than in the US (or the Bahamas, or St Croix).

I recall going to a party (in a favela, no less) a couple of years ago with some friends. My friend Geovana had a friend who knew the host. Neither Geovana nor I did, so I was a third-degree invitee. I was also one of maybe 4-5 whites in a sea of black faces. I was welcomed and became the unofficial photographer for the party. In St Croix, I probably would have been shivved.

In many respects Brazil and the US have similar histories regarding the races, so it is interesting that I sense such differences in attitudes. In the US, there is still racial tension, but people like to pretend that race doesn´t exist (unless of course you are completing an employment application). Here, people talk quite openly about race and their mixed backgrounds, and the attitude is. hey, what´s the big deal?

Which to me is a healthier attitude.

But maybe my perceptions are all wrong and based only on my limited experiences. It would be interesting to hear what some others think.

See you Friday with the Friday Postcard.

Abraços,

John

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