Brazil does not know Brazil. I complement the classic phrase from the song Querelas do Brasil to say that Brazil does not know and value black history and culture. To contribute to this immersion, the Black Guide prepared a list of streets that are worth a visit (may be virtually) and that are home to African powers and heritage. Put it on your travel wish list and let’s leverage our black diaspora riches.
1 – Ladeira do Curuzu, Curuzu, Salvador
“Who goes up the Ladeira do Curuzu?”. The street was immortalized by the Afro group Ilê Aiyê, which has its headquarters there, the Senzala do Barro Preto, which hosts a school and events such as the Noite da Beleza Negra, in addition to the group’s rehearsals. There are also Candomblé terreiros Jitolu, which gives rise to Ilê Aiyê, and Vodun Zo, one of the oldest in the city and listed as a municipal historical heritage. There are also a number of hair salons and barbershops specializing in Afro aesthetics, such as Gerusa Menezzes. One of the founders of Ilê Apolinário de Jesus, Popô, has a bust on one of the corners. It is also possible to eat the typical Bahian feijoada or review it over a beer in the bars and warehouses on the slope, which has been recently revitalized and has benches and signposts.
2 – Eva Maria de Jesus Street, Tia Eva, Campo Grande
The road cuts through the Tia Eva quilombola community in the urban area of the capital of Mato Grosso do Sul. There, is the São Benedito Church, the oldest in the city, built in 1919 and which houses an old image of Saint Anthony, who accompanied the enslaved freed Eva Maria de Jesus, Tia Eva, on her way to reach the city. Parties are also held for São Benedito in the month of May and there are trancistas who do Afro hairstyles. It is possible to visit the community center, which hosts events, as well as local shops or simply exchange a finger of prose with some descendant of Tia Eva, having tereré (cold drink with yerba mate).
3 – Rua São Francisco da Prainha, Gamboa, Rio
It is a small cobbled street in the heart of Gamboa, a sub-neighborhood of Saúde, which was elected by Time Out Magazine as one of the 50 coolest neighborhoods in the world, the only one in Brazil. The street starts at Largo da Prainha, where the statue of Mercedes Baptista is, the only black woman in Rio, who was a precursor of Afro dance, had her own dance company and was the first black woman to dance at the Municipal Theater of Rio de Janeiro. River. There, the samba of the women of Moça Prosa takes place, who have been fighting with local merchants to continue performing. There are several bars and restaurants where you can eat and drink on the sidewalk. The street is lined with old townhouses, graffiti and stalls selling drinks and street food, where there is a flow of young people dancing to music on Monday and Friday nights, when sambas take place at Pedra do Sal, which is at the end of its extension. The place considered an urban quilombo carries history and strong energies and is the birthplace of samba carioca and also gives access to Morro da Conceição, where Casa Omolokum is located, a restaurant that reinterprets terreiro food.
4 – Rua Dom José de Barros, República, São Paulo
In the center of the city of São Paulo, the street in the shape of a boardwalk houses street vendors during the day and workers from the central region, mostly black, socializing at night. There is a samba circle; hip hop’s ground zero (inscription on the sidewalk in honor of the precursors of the rhythm that performed there). It gives access to the Reggae Gallery, a stronghold of African migrants who sell hair, clothes, food and musical products. Rei do Prato Feito brings together samba rock lovers who dance inside the bar and on the street. Galeria Olido is the stage for rhythm classes. Sesc 24 de Maio took the spirit of the street and opened with the exhibition Jamaica, Jamaica. There is also Trackers, which hosted the Discopedia party, which has now migrated to Pinheiros. The sidewalk ends in front of Largo Paissandu, where the Rosário dos Pretos Church and the Mãe Preta statue are located, which for years was the only monument of black women in the city and which, despite being a servile portrait, was re-signified by the black movement. the place where the procession of the Afro group Ilu Oba de Min ends on Carnival Fridays and the Black Women’s March on July 25th.
5 – Rua Thomé de Souza, Liberdade, São Luís
The main street of the largest urban quilombo in the Americas, the Liberdade neighborhood in São Luís, has black people as far as the eye can see. Liberdade currently has at least 25 points of tourist interest, as the Black Guide pointed out. There are several terreiros and centers for “bois”, such as the Floresta and the Boi de Leonardo, which this June have bumba meu boi parties. The complex has attracted the attention of visitors who want trips beyond the beaches. Along the narrow road flanked by simple houses, there are also terreiros such as Yle Ashe Ogum Logbo and Yle Ashe Oba Yzoo.
6 – Rua Luiz Guaranha, Quilombo Areal in Menino Deus, Porto Alegre
It is in the middle of a middle-class neighborhood, which in the past was a place of hiding and later housing for black people, where samba was born in the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, which today can be enjoyed at Boteko do Caninha, which is close to the street. The small dead-end street is one of the last black resistances in the neighborhood. It is surrounded by simple, low-rise houses with some graffiti depicting black women and is home to the Quilombo do Areal Community Association, where for years the writer Maria Helena Vargas, now deceased, did reading work in the community. There is also the samba school and the Areal do Futuro soccer team, which offers percussion and dance workshops and organizes street rehearsals and carnival. The community seeks recognition of the quilombola area and it is always important to remember: there are black people in the South!
And you, what other streets would you include in this list?
PS 1: I would love to see city halls and/or companies putting up signs signaling that these streets were elected the blackest and most beautiful in Brazil and attracting more tourists to them, as with other lists in the sector.
PS 2: When this happens or when you reproduce this list, don’t forget to say that it was prepared by the Black Guide
Actress Vera Lopes collaborated
