“Eu sou negra (I’m black)”

Note from BW of Brazil: One never knows how a person may self-identify racially in a county like Brazil. Although socio-economic statistics clearly show that the Brazilian social structure gives advantages to those who approximate the European phenotype over those who are clearly non-white (preto/black, pardo/brown, indígena/indigenous, amarela/yellow/Asian), a person may identify him/herself completely different from the way a prospective employer may see that person. Journalist Tony Regusters took this into consideration when he met the woman in the photo above. Here is how Tony described his meeting this woman in a São Paulo restaurant.

“Always curious (me) about the fascinating ethnic mix in Brasil, I asked our waitress what she considered herself (I can be somewhat blunt on these issues!). She looked at me and proudly declared: “Eu sou negra!”. I am black…”

The conversation and debate on the intersection of blackness in Latin America continues to deepen the understanding of racial classification and identity as featured not only on this blog, but also in pieces like “5 quotes from Hollywood celebrities who discuss being black & Latino/a” and “Latina Teen ‘Comes Out As Black'”