From Ethnicity to Race and Gender: Transformations of Black Lay Sodalities in Salvador, Brazil

Nishida, Mieko

doi:10.1353/jsh/32.2.329

Cited by 19 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In the nineteenth century, irmandades served a variety of purposes, including purchasing slaves' freedom as well as paying for festivals and masses and providing funerals for their members (Braga 1987;Falcon 1997;Guareschi 1985;Kiddy 1998;Mulvey 1980Mulvey , 1982Nishida 1998). It was through these organizations that newly arrived Africans and people of African descent were integrated into Brazilian society, and those who were elected to officer positions held much prestige in black communities (Mulvey 1980(Mulvey , 1982.…”

Section: Religion In Afro-brazilmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Against this backdrop, calls for solidarity based on a categorically separate racial identity strikes a bad chord for many people-including many people of African descent in Brazil (Hanchard 1994;Reichmann 1999). Another problem, according to others, is that the movement's leadership is dominated by a small number of relatively light-skinned middle-class blacks from the city who are out of touch with the everyday lives of most Afro-Brazilians like the sisters of Boa Morte (Bacelar 2001;Burdick 1992;Nishida 2003).…”

Section: Manifestomentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Rural Women and the Varieties of Black Politics in Bahia, Brazil

Selka¹

2009

bwg

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article focuses on the Afro-Catholic Sisterhood of Our Lady of Good Death (Boa Morte) in the rural town of Cachoeira in the state of Bahia, Brazil. I examine the tensions between the sisters of Boa Morte and male religious and political actors from the city, including Catholic priests, elite politicians, and black movement activists. I examine how the women of Boa Morte make strategic use of the limited political resources available to them in their rural communities in order to insure that their sisterhood continues and thrives. Along the way, I emphasize the ways that gender conditions access to religious and political resources in rural Bahia.

show abstract

Section: Religion In Afro-brazilmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Manifestomentioning

confidence: 99%

Rural Women and the Varieties of Black Politics in Bahia, Brazil

Selka¹

2009

bwg

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the 19th century, irmandades served a variety of purposes, including purchasing slaves' freedom as well as paying for festivals and masses and providing funerals for their members (Mulvey 1980(Mulvey , 1982Guareschi 1985;Braga 1987;Falcon 1997;Kiddy 1998;Nishida 1998). It was through these organizations that newly arrived Africans and people of African descent were integrated into Brazilian society, and those who were elected to officer positions held much prestige in black communities (Mulvey 1980(Mulvey , 1982.…”

Section: Historical and Ethnographic Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Sisterhood of Boa Morte in Brazil: Harmonious Mixture, Black Resistance, and the Politics of Religious Practice

Selka

2008

J Latin Amer Carib Anth

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

RESUMEN Este artigo analisa a relação entre política e religião no Recôncavo Baiano, região do Nordeste brasileiro, a partir da observação da festa afro‐católica da Irmandade da Nossa Senhora da Boa Morte. No Brasil, religiões de origem africana têm sido consideradas exemplos idealizados de mistura cultural, especialmente quando combinadas às tradições européias. Entretanto, e mais recentemente, militantes que lutam contra desigualdades raciais têm tomado estas mesmas práticas religiosas como símbolos de resistência cultural. Enquanto os políticos da elite invocam a Irmandade como símbolo de mistura harmoniosa, militantes anti‐racista a interpretam como demonstração de resistência negra à dominação. Neste contexto, o artigo investiga de que modo as praticantes interpretam esta apropriação simbólica em torno de suas práticas religiosas. Especificamente, examino de que modo as irmãs da Boa Morte se utilizam destes dois discursos, o da mistura harmoniosa e o da resistência negra, para o benefício de seus próprios objetivos. This article focuses on the intersection of religion and politics in the Recôncavo region of the state of Bahia in northeastern Brazil. African‐derived religions, particular practices that combine African and European traditions, have long been cited as examples of the Brazilian ideal of cultural mixture. More recently, however, activists struggling against racial inequality have sought to claim African‐derived religions as emblems of cultural defiance. Focusing on the Afro‐Catholic festival of the Sisterhood of Our Lady of Boa Morte in the state of Bahia, I investigate how elite politicians invoke this sisterhood as a symbol of harmonious cultural and racial mixture while antiracist activists simultaneously claim it as an emblem of black resistance. Against this backdrop, I explore how practitioners have responded to and engaged politicized representations of their religion. In particular, I examine how the sisters of Boa Morte negotiate the discourses of harmonious mixture and black resistance for their own purposes.

show abstract

Black Saints in Early Modern Global Catholicism

Rowe

2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

From Ethnicity to Race and Gender: Transformations of Black Lay Sodalities in Salvador, Brazil

Cited by 19 publications

References 0 publications

Rural Women and the Varieties of Black Politics in Bahia, Brazil

Rural Women and the Varieties of Black Politics in Bahia, Brazil

The Sisterhood of Boa Morte in Brazil: Harmonious Mixture, Black Resistance, and the Politics of Religious Practice

Black Saints in Early Modern Global Catholicism

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About