“With the exception of Nigeria, Brazil is the country with the largest African population in the world. It is therefore not only strange but also scandalous that such a country defines itself only through a Eurocentric model, for the final objective of the Eurocentric ideology is the elimination of African descendants: a type of subtle and hypocritical genocide which does not leave any traces of its crime”. Abdias do Nascimento, Orishas: The Living Gods of Africa in Brazil. (1) - picture: São Salvador da Bahia, Praça Terreiro de Jesus.

My interest in Brazil goes back many years. I have always been intrigued and fascinated by the huge castles the Europeans built on the West Coast of Africa especially those at Elmina and Cape Coast, in Ghana. These massive structures were built first for trading in gold, spices and later, for the nefarious slave trade. I always wanted to know where the millions of persons they took from Africa finally ended.

Elmina Castle (O castelo São Jorge da Mina) was built by the Portuguese in 1482. Other castles built by the Portuguese were: Forte de São Antonio (1503, Axim), Forte São Sebastião (1520, Shama) and Forte de São Francisco Xavier (1640). Other Europeans also came to Ghana (then Gold Coast) Brandenburger (Germans), French, Swedish, Danes, Dutch and, of course, the British.
  

The Portuguese were in Ghana from 1470 until 1637 when they were defeated by the Dutch. I also got to know or hear about a lot of persons with Portuguese names, such as Olympio, D’Almeida, Da Costa, Da Silva, De Souza, Dos Santos, who were very much at home in West Africa. These persons who are called “Brazilians” in Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria had relatives in Brazil and were the descendants of Africans who returned from Brazil, especially in 1830’s after the government there had turned against Africans and was making life impossible for them. They were accused of being the ring leaders of the various slave revolts which shook Brazil in that period, especially the Male revolts.

I am therefore not the first African to go to Brazil but I believe I am one of the very few who have travelled there to see how the Africans there are faring. The first Africans, as we know, went to Brazil under the inhuman conditions of slavery. The traumatic journey across the Atlantic and the terrible fate they met in Brazil are well known. Are their descendents now enjoying better conditions than those that made some of their ancestors flee Brazil? Do they now enjoy full freedom? Do they still experience racial discrimination? These were some of the questions I asked myself before embarking on this journey which was an educational journey. A journey of emotions because the suffering of other Africans in slavery and colonialism affects us even today. Europeans may not understand that the continuing racial discrimination and obvious injustice suffered by persons because of their colour affects all those with the same or similar skin-colour, no matter their social condition or country of origin.

Our original plan was to go directly to Bahia which is the most African of Brazilian cities but our Brazilian friends advised us that one could not visit Brazil without seeing Rio de Janeiro, the most beautiful city. So Rio became for us a station on the way to Bahia.

RIO DE JANEIRO, A STOP ON THE WAY TO BAHIA

Copacabana, Avenida Atlântica, paved with black and white stones, designed by Burle Marx

We arrived at Rio de Janeiro on 4 November, 2006 after a very long journey of several hours, Frankfurt - Sao Paulo-Rio. But our discomfort was surely nothing compared to our brothers and sisters who were abducted and sent across the ocean. Chained, rowing, without much food or drink, they made their way in the dirty ships with the whips of their masters ensuring that they never relaxed. We were rather lucky to be flying in a modern aircraft with friendly and helpful flight personnel.

We drove from the airport to our hotel, right in the middle of Copacabana. What a breath-taking view from our hotel! I have never seen a place like the Copacabana beach. The street, Avenida Atlantica, with its wavy black and white patterns by the famous landscape architect, Burle Marx, is itself an art work. From our hotel we had a fantastic and clear view of the Sugar Loaf Mountain (O Pão do Açúcar) which is one of the main symbols of Rio, after the Statute of Christ the Redeemer (O Cristo Redentor).

We visited many museums: Museum of Fine Arts (Museu das Belas Artes), Museum of Modern Art (Museu da Arte Moderna) a post-modern construction which is situated in a very extensive and beautiful park, Flamingo Park (O Parque do Flamingo). Another impressive sight was the Metropolitan Cathedral (O Catedral Metropolitana), a conic structure soaring into heaven. The most impressive of all the buildings we saw was the Museum of Contemporary Art (O Museu da Arte Contemporanea) at Niteroi, a few kilometres from Rio. As one approaches the museum, one sees arising, as it were, from the sea a structure looking more like an UFO. This building was designed by the most famous Brazilian architect, Oscar Niemeyer who is hundred years old. I believe that if the architect had constructed only this building in his entire career, he would have earned his place in the history of world architecture. Neither before nor after our visit to Brazil have I seen any building as imposing and as ultra modern as the Museum of Contemporary Art at Niteroi.

We also visited the Botanical Garden (O Jardim Botánico) in Rio. What a vegetal explosion of colours! Many of the tropical plants were known to me since we have them also in West Africa but nowhere did the plants appear to be as alive as in Rio. The Botanical Garden seemed to have all that is beautiful in a tropical climate.

Another interesting place was the Sambódromo, a huge structure with capacity for 40,000 constructed by Oscar Niemeyer. Here is the climax of the Carnival where all the various groups must present themselves before a jury that decides which is the best group. There is also a Carnival museum where one can admire the costumes of previous carnivals.

Rio de Janeiro is indeed a marvellous city, “Cidade Maravilhosa” but after ten days of visiting various places and enjoying the hospitality of the “Cariocas”, as the inhabitants of this wonderful city are called, we decided  to move on to our main destination: Bahia.

BAHIA,BAHIA,BAHIA

The arrival in São Salvador de Bahia de Todos Santos (Saviour Saint of the Bay of All Saints) on 14 November 2006 was in itself a source of profound satisfaction and spiritual contentment. I felt I had at last reached the destination of most of the brothers and sisters who were dragged across the Atlantic, against their will to unknown destinations by those greedy nations who are now very busy preaching human rights to the rest of the world. They are loud in their magnificent orations about human liberty and dignity but they are the very first to do violence to human beings. I had heard so much about Bahia in connection with the Brazilians or African Brazilians who returned to West Africa. Moreover, the novels of Jorge Amado had also made us familiar with many places in Sao Salvador. I felt I knew Bahia even before going there.

The writings of Abdias do Nacsimento had also revealed the real existential problems of the African Brazilians in facing discrimination in a land which even denied the existence of such discrimination. Contrary to the advice of our travel agency, we insisted on staying in a hotel in the Pelourinho, the old city, the historical centre in order to be close to all the places of historical importance and to be able to visit places of interest on foot.

Pelourinho, Salvador da Bahia

The name “Pelourinho,” pillory, is actually the name of the place where slaves were openly punished, mostly whipped by their masters in order to show their power and authority and as example to others. The Portuguese slave masters decided to erect the pillory right in the centre of the city, in the very large open space where the Casa Jorge Amado is now located.

 

Kwame Opoku 22 August, 2008

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