Are Black/White Relations better in Brazil than in the U.S.? (neighborhoods, movies)

[Rwarky]

Are Black/White Relations better in Brazil than in the U.S.?

[macmeal]

Very difficult to say. While Brazil lacks the overt, codified racism that once existed in the American South,(and even in some Northern areas), and there's no parallel with the "KKK" in Brazil, there IS a sort of racial 'pecking order'. The Northeast shoulder of Brazil is heavily Black, and quite poor. The Southern "neck" of Brazil, (next to Uruguay) is heavily white, and quite prosperous. In the large cities, the very 'rich' tend to be white or nearly so....while the dwellers in the 'favelas' are MOST of the time, of a noticeably darker hue.

It's quite a varied place...all SORTS of races and mixtures thereof (including one of the largest communities of Japanese in the world), all sorts of Eastern Europeans, etc etc ....

Brazil probably lacks the degree of open racism recently endemic in the American south...but it just as certainly has its OWN version of the 'status quo', too. Of course, Brazil never held itself up to being 'the land of freedom', either...like we did.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by macmeal

Very difficult to say. While Brazil lacks the overt, codified racism that once existed in the American South,(and even in some Northern areas), and there's no parallel with the "KKK" in Brazil, there IS a sort of racial 'pecking order'. The Northeast shoulder of Brazil is heavily Black, and quite poor. The Southern "neck" of Brazil, (next to Uruguay) is heavily white, and quite prosperous. In the large cities, the very 'rich' tend to be white or nearly so....while the dwellers in the 'favelas' are MOST of the time, of a noticeably darker hue.

It's quite a varied place...all SORTS of races and mixtures thereof (including one of the largest communities of Japanese in the world), all sorts of Eastern Europeans, etc etc ....

Brazil probably lacks the degree of open racism recently endemic in the American south...but it just as certainly has its OWN version of the 'status quo', too. Of course, Brazil never held itself up to being 'the land of freedom', either...like we did.

You could almost say that Brazil is a flipped version of the US geographically and culturally, in a sense. It is interesting that the Black Belt of the Western Hemisphere in pretty much around the Caribbean and the regions of North America and South America adjacent to the Caribbean. Hence, the reason why the "Blackest" part of Brazil is in the Northeast and the "Blackest" part of the US is in the Southeast.

[Jeff Jarrett]

I think Black/Brown Brazilians are starting to adopt the Black American style of anti-White racism after seeing movies like City Of God and City Of Men where they constantly refer to the token White favelado as a Branquelo which I have been told is basically like the Portuguese version of saying White boy.

[Lucario]

Originally Posted by Jeff Jarrett

I think Black/Brown Brazilians are starting to adopt the Black American style of anti-White racism after seeing movies like City Of God and City Of Men where they constantly refer to the token White favelado as a Branquelo which I have been told is basically like the Portuguese version of saying White boy.

Thanks for the insight.

[Lucario]

Originally Posted by macmeal

Very difficult to say. While Brazil lacks the overt, codified racism that once existed in the American South,(and even in some Northern areas), and there's no parallel with the "KKK" in Brazil, there IS a sort of racial 'pecking order'. The Northeast shoulder of Brazil is heavily Black, and quite poor. The Southern "neck" of Brazil, (next to Uruguay) is heavily white, and quite prosperous. In the large cities, the very 'rich' tend to be white or nearly so....while the dwellers in the 'favelas' are MOST of the time, of a noticeably darker hue.

It's quite a varied place...all SORTS of races and mixtures thereof (including one of the largest communities of Japanese in the world), all sorts of Eastern Europeans, etc etc ....

Brazil probably lacks the degree of open racism recently endemic in the American south...but it just as certainly has its OWN version of the 'status quo', too. Of course, Brazil never held itself up to being 'the land of freedom', either...like we did.

No, but Brazil has always held itself up as a "racial democracy." This, of course, is very much wrong.

[macmeal]

Originally Posted by Sunil's Dad

No, but Brazil has always held itself up as a "racial democracy." This, of course, is very much wrong.

Did not know they had anything officially to 'say' about the situation...but I suppose I'm not surprised. After all, North Korea is a "Democratic Republic"..right? So I guess Brazil could call itself a 'racial democracy' if that's what it takes....

Thanks for the info.

[Indi9]

Thanks for opening the question/thread. Very enlightening. But are there any cities in Brazil that racially diverse, not the big cities like Rio but more of a medium-sized city where people stand, I think and hope, more of a chance to interact with each other across perceived racial boundaries? I want to visit Brazil one day, and even though I know racism exists in many forms everywhere I just find it easier to deal with or bypass racial assumptions and hierarchies altogether when people take the time to get to know each other.

[crisp444]

Indi, I actually think that a city like Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro would be the perfect place for you to interact with Brazilians that are black, white, and mixed. I say this because in the north, the cities tend to be very black and many white people live in walled, gated communities near the beach or in the hills. In the south, the population is mostly white and one of my best friends (who is from a city south of Sao Paulo) has told me that there many of the smaller and medium-sized cities don't really have that much of a black or "colored" population. In large cities like Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, however, you will see people of all races and racial admixtures walking the streets, dining in cafes, and shopping if you stick to regular, working class to middle class areas. Poor neighborhoods will basically be black; rich neighborhoods will be white. I know someone who now lives in Miami who grew up in a wealthy area of Sao Paulo - his family worked, lived, and "played" there - he told me that he really never really had the opportunity to interact with black people until moving to the United States. This is why I would suggest the "normal" neighborhoods (not favelas, NOT gated/walled communities) in diverse cities to meet a variety of Brazilians.

[Indi9]

Ahh... Ok. Very helpful, crisp444. I am flashing back to my visits to Brisbane and Sydney, Australia. Plenty of opportunities to connect across cultures even in these massive cities.

Thank you.