2 were part of trip sponsored in July by UNCF

BY ASHLEY THOMAS
DAYTONA TIMES

Professor Raphael Jackson and Dr. Sabrina Jordan of Bethune-Cookman University were part of a group traveling to Bahia Salvador, Brazil, last month for a five-day, in-depth immersion and learning experience of the women of the region.

Professor Raphael Jackson (standing), is pictured with Dr. Tiffany Adams, Director of the Olodun Center in Brazil, George Washington and Dr. Sabrina Jordan. Jackson and Jordan recently attended the Tenth Annual Mellon Faculty Seminar held in Bahia Salvador, Brazil.

The group included several Spelman College students and Dr. Cynthia Neal Spence, an associate professor of Sociology at Spelman as well as Dr. Kim Butler, chair of Africana Studies of Rutgers University.

The trip, sponsored in part by the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), was to "learn more about the African Diaspora as it relates to African-Brazilian identities, culture and power," explained Jackson, and include "the history and importance the role women play in the construction of Brazilian identity."

He added: "They are essential. The Brazilian identity is based around the Afro-Brazilian woman."

Focused on culture, history, religion

Speakers from multiple backgrounds addressed the group, focusing on "various aspects of the culture, the history, the religion," Jackson explained.

"We went to different places: the Quilombo – places where the Africans ran away, free communities where they fought to resist the Portuguese, the Spanish, the Dutch. We talked to some of the inhabitants."

Exceeded expectations

"The UNCF Mellon seminar exceeded my expectations," Jordan told the Times. "We explored women and women resistance movements of Brazil and also resistance movements of Afro-Brazilians. We went to a number of places."

Pointing to a picture of a somewhat weathered area in Bahia, Jackson gave his initial perception of the area and the contrast after visiting, saying he "thought about the whole place looking like that. This is an ultra-modern city, this is the scenic version… It’s like going to Williamsburg and thinking ‘Oh this is America.’"

Appetizing dishes

Mentioning Arkadije, a distinctive Brazilian dish, Jackson said it came without surprise that the food was highly appetizing. "What didn’t surprise me is the food is really good, I mean the food was so good, which were basically African foods I’d had in Nigeria."

Love from Florida

Not only did Jackson receive a wealth of knowledge from his trip to Bahia, he also had the opportunity to leave a bit of the Sunshine state with the citizens there.

"A lot of love from Florida and a lot of love from Cookman," is what was left. "I came down with three bags and came back with one. I gave out a lot of Barack Obama," who, Jackson commented, the people loved. "I shared a bunch of Bethune-Cookman T-shirts. If you notice in the pictures I always have my Cookman stuff on. They look up to us and what we’ve accomplished here."

Facebook connect

Before leaving for Brazil, Jackson prepared for his trip by studying Portuguese and brushing up on the country’s history. He also connected via Facebook with community members in the area, one who happened to be named George Washington. Jackson ended up running into Washington while experiencing the nightlife of the city and even snapped a picture with him.

Growing, but poverty remains

"Some of the street kids saddened me. There weren’t a lot, but there were little children out on the street begging for money," Jackson told the Times. "But the country has really leapfrogged. It is the seventh largest economy in the world; they will probably be up there with the United States soon.

"The country has a lot of money, has a lot of potential, and once they utilize their people, they are going to fly. Education is free there."

America, Brazil connection

Describing the impact the Mid-Atlantic slave trade had on Brazil, Jackson explained how "almost 40 percent of the slaves brought from Africa were taken to Brazil," and that "out of 200 million people almost half of them are identified as Afro-Brazilian."

"Where we are very Americanized in subtle ways that we don’t see, they are Africanized in every way possible – the dress, the attitude the speech."

The two groups separated by thousands of miles nevertheless have bonds and similarities remaining between them as Jordan suggests of African-Brazilians and African-Americans.

"One of the most riveting places – a connection between Afro-American women and Afro-Brazilian women – was the (‘Irmandade da Nossa) Senhora da Boa Morte’ or sisterhood of good death," she explained.

"This sisterhood was established during slavery, where these women actually bought other women’s manumission papers or freedom papers. It was an all-Black women’s convent. One of the connections I found out while I was there was that Coretta Scott King and some other African-Americans had donated money for one of their buildings and so I began to see the connections between Afro-Brazilians and Afro-Americans instantly when I found out about this.

"We visited a real live sugar mill plantation that was just breathtaking in addition to going to a church built in 1755 by enslaved Africans and the indigenous people. The inside of the church is made of all gold."

Continuing on the theme of religion, Jackson added: "It’s a catholic country, but the underlying religion practice is what is called Candomblé, an African form of worship which has been passed through generations."

As a closing thought, Jackson said the Brazilian "people were happy, people were friendly, and I’ve been a lot of places in the Black world. They were happy."