Note from BW of Brazil: It’s been a while now, but as this blog highlights the experiences of black Brazilian women, the name Joyce Ribeiro has appeared on this blog several times since 2011. Joyce is one of the few black women who is regularly featured on a nationally broadcast network news program and also one of the most well-known. Her excellence as a journalist over the past decade is simply testament to the fact that black women are as qualified as any other group to present quality work. They simply lack the same opportunities, often times simply because of the racial hierarchy that seeks to keep them “in their places” even when they are equally or more qualified. When will it be that Brazil will recognize that it will never realize its full potential when it doesn’t allow half of its population the same opportunities as its other half?
“I suffered from a lack of references,” says SBT anchor about blacks on TV
Joyce Ribeiro is the only black only to act as host a daily journal on network television
By Sandro Nascimento
At the command of the morning Primeiro Impacto (First Impact) program since March on SBT, journalist Joyce Ribeiro is the only regular black woman host on a network news program in the country. “I’m aware of this responsibility and I am very happy to have reached this position in my career,” she says.
In an exclusive interview for this columnist of NaTelinha, Joyce Ribeiro complains about the lack of space for blacks on TV and comments on the racist attacks she suffered in 2011 on the internet: “Today I think that the feeling of sadness affects (me) more. It proves that we still live in a world with such limited people and focused on spreading hate in many different ways saddens me a lot. “
Earlier this year, she released her first book through the publisher Planeta, Chica da Silva – Romance de uma vida (Chica da Silva – Novel of a Lifetime). “Writing my first book was the realization of a dream. For many years I thought that one day I would release a book, but I thought it would take a long time to happen,” she commemorates.
Joyce Ribeiro has been with SBT for 11 years. She doesn’t like the lack of space for blacks on TV and has released a book.
Check out the full interview:
You are now the only regular black woman host on a television news network in the country. How do you observe this scenario of the market?
Joyce Ribeiro – I am aware of this responsibility and I am very happy to have reached this position in my career. Over the years, with the experience, I realized the importance of representativeness, I saw how I suffered from the lack of successful references in several areas. We have excellent black professionals who can’t get an opportunity on TV and that needs to change. Television should be a picture of our society that is diverse.
How do you see the decision of the SBT to return to an hour of Primeiro Impacto? Would it be proof that the public and the station are satisfied with the results? Do you feel that the journal is stabilized on the network?
Joyce Ribeiro – We celebrated a lot. We work so much in the early mornings to take a good journal to the public, but we are never satisfied. We always want to do more and better to achieve unprecedented results.
Some hosts migrated to entertainment. Would you agree to an experience of heading this type of show?
Joyce Ribeiro – I’d love to have this experience and this is one of my future plans. Today I do Joyce Entrevista (interview) on YouTube. It’s a program of various interviews. In the future I plan to do a similar project on TV.
You’ve been with SBT for 11 years. Of all the professional experiences at the station, which was the most challenging? Why?
Joyce Ribeiro – I think the most challenging was the Boletim de Ocorrências journal. Talking about daily urban violence and diving into this problem of our society was not easy, but I learned a lot in that opportunity.
You suffered racist attacks on your social network (1). Is reporting it to the police the best way in these cases?
Joyce Ribeiro – During my life I’ve faced many situations of racism. In my career today, I believe that racism shows itself more when looking for better job opportunities and the doors still not really open for people to show themselves as being qualified. This reduced number of professionals in front of the screens has generated has generated these attacks of prejudiced people and against our presence. Reporting it is the right thing to do in cases like this and I did it to encourage others who go through the same.
Were you able to identify these people? What will happen to them?
Joyce Ribeiro – The punishment for this kind of criminal doesn’t happen in all cases. They have yet to find the person who assaulted me, because most often they hide in fake profiles, even so, the best way is to report it and push for punishment.
Psychologically, to what extent did these attacks affect you?
Joyce Ribeiro – Today I think the feeling of sadness affects (me) more. It proves that we still live in a world with such limited people and focused on spreading hate in many different ways saddens me a lot. On the other hand, I think of the thousands of people who believe in the essence of the human being, the possibility of using our energies in positive actions and thinking of common development, leaving aside friction on account of color, gender, sexual orientation, appearance or social condition for example.
Why did you choose telling the history of Chica da Silva in your debut as a writer? Did she inspire you?
Joyce Ribeiro – Writing my first book was the realization of a dream. For many years I thought that one day I would release a book, but I thought it would take a long time for this to happen. Fortunately it happened now. I always thought of writing about a woman, there are several who inspire me, I would like to research to learn more and share this with other people and certainly Chica da Silva is one of them. At many points the life story of Chica is similar to the women of today. She suffered, fought, dreamed and didn’t let herself be paralyzed by the problems.
Is Chica da Silva – Romance de uma vida a biography?
Joyce Ribeiro – It’s an historical novel. As an author, and being a novel, I imagined how many passages of her life must have been. Based on real facts, I was detailing various moments according to the customs of the time and Chica’s personality.
Have you already thought of a second publication?
Joyce Ribeiro – Yes, I really want to publish again. I have several issues I want to address, really a lot, but I still haven’t moved forward to the next. I’ll need some time since the process of the book is hard work and requires extreme dedication.
How is your routine to take care of Lorraine and Maria Luiza (her daughters of 11 months and 4 years, respectively) and at the same time reconcile this with your work schedule?
Joyce Ribeiro – I waited and dreamed much about motherhood. This is certainly the most special moment of my life. I knew that to accomplish all of this would not be easy, but practice shows that reconciling family and working is a lot more work than we imagined. On the other hand I could see that with a lot of years, patience, and a lot of discipline it’s possible to do everything. Each home and each family ends up finding their recipe and their way to making everything work and this is the most interesting (thing) in life. You have to enjoy every stage.
Source: Natelinha
Note
- Add Joyce’s name to a long list of prominent Afro-Brazilian women who have suffered racist comments on social networks.
great story.