Black Women against the Land Grab: The Fight for Racial Justice in Brazil

by Keisha-Khan Y. Perry

In Brazil and throughout the African diaspora, black women, especially poor black women, are rarely considered leaders of social movements let alone political theorists. But in the northeastern city of Salvador, Brazil, it is these very women who determine how urban policies are established. Focusing on the Gamboa de Baixo neighborhood in Salvador’s city center, Black Women against the Land Grab explores how black women’s views on development have radicalized local communities to demand justice and social change. In Black Women against the Land Grab , Keisha-Khan Y. Perry describes the key role of local women activists in the citywide movement for land and housing rights. She reveals the importance of geographic location for understanding the gendered aspects of urban renewal and the formation of black women–led social movements. How have black women shaped the politics of urban redevelopment, Perry asks, and what does this kind of political intervention tell us about black women’s agency? Her work uncovers the ways in which political labor at the neighborhood level is central to the mass mobilization of black people against institutional racism and for citizenship rights and resources in Brazil. Highlighting the political life of black communities, specifically those in urban contexts often represented as socially pathological and politically bankrupt, Black Women against the Land Grab offers a valuable corrective to how we think about politics and about black women, particularly poor black women, as a political force.

Genres: Nonfiction, Race, History

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2013

Reviews

[Sasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm glad I got a chance to sit down and read this book fully--despite its relatively short length, it poses scads of questions, especially for those concerned with urban space and gender. Gender in specific, really: I've read so many books lately on urban land use and the poor, but so few of them consider gender at all, not to even hope for a good analysis of gender and race combined. Let's hope for more books like this in the future from urban history!

[Laurel Schuster · Rating 5 out of 5]

had a great talk with keisha-khan perry about construction of self and place through spiritual connection to water shes brilliant. this book really informs my views on the role of informal settlement in community organizing against environmental racism.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the best work of sociology I've read yet. This book is so grounded in Gamboa de Baixo and her people, particularly with their strong Black, female leadership in the community against gentrification. Highly highly recommend

[Margarita Rosario · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a strong example of activist ethnography. This book has forever changed how I approach academia.

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars. Well written, well researched, but, personally, I was a little bored