"OUR STORIES ARE OUR STORIES" | Black Women of Brazil

Note from BW of Brazil: It is the very theme of this blog and can never be discussed too much. What are the challenges and what does it mean to be a black woman in Brazil? On the recent July 25th, International Day of Latin American and Caribbean Black Women, a trailer of the video “Trama das Pretas: Nossas Histórias São Nossas Histórias Our Stories: (‘plot or storyline of black women: our stories are our stories) debuted on YouTube, featuring a roundtable discussion of eight black women discussing the aforementioned questions. The clip is less than two minutes, but I am really looking forward to seeing the full video. Below is a brief summary of the video featuring a statement on why these young ladies felt compelled to tell their stories, along with the video credits and the video itself. Be sure to check it out below. The transcript in English appears right above the video.

Trama das Pretas – Dia da Mulher Negra Latinoamericana e Caribenha

Courtesy of the Agência TheLírios YouTube page

Being a black woman in Brazilian society is not a task for amateurs, it is a daily struggle. Each day is a new battle to be won. Our struggle goes beyond the question of work, really because working for us has always been an obligation and not a privilege.

Our struggle is for the right to exist! Exist in a society that insists on denying everything that represents us and that tries at any cost to place us at its margins.

That demonizes our culture, which makes the tone of our skin a joke, which insists on saying that we are exotic when in fact it’s just us, that tries to convince us at all costs that denegrir (denigrating) is something pejorative when tornar-se negro (becoming black) should be something natural.

Being black is more than being a queen it’s being a warrior.

July 25 – International Day of Black Women Latin American and Caribbean and National Day of Tereza de Benguela and Black Woman.

0:11-0:23 – Gathered together, we perceive that our stories are different. But to speak and listen is fundamental for our process of strengthening and recognition.

OUR STORIES ARE OUR STORIES

Simone: It’s no use for the black woman in this moment, in determined other moments of life, being fragile, they have to be strong, be warriors, from very early on. These are some of the things that bother me a lot.

Luana: The truth is that I can be what I want to be and every black woman can be what they want to be.

Tainá: Today I’m a student of architecture. There are people that think not, at that time they find me in school and said that “what are you doing, do you have children?” No, I’m 22, I’m studying.

Janine: It’s that my place of speaking is my place of speaking. It’s no one that gives me this. The place is mine.

Priscila: My hair is mine, my story is mine. My, my…ancestry interferes, yes, with who I am, because today it determines who I am today. So, it’s like this. Why are you bothered by me?