Haiti and Brazil Share More Similarities Than Differences

Brazil and Haiti have many similarities, the most distinctive being that both have African Ancestry. Brazil has a population made of diverse people with rich cultures. Brazil contains a large population of people with slave ancestry, “estimated four million slaves who were brought to the country over a 300-year period.” (Darlington) With that being said, similarly to Haiti, they have a lot of history and culture that stems from African roots. There is a thing called Capoeira Angola which, “In the mid-16th Century, while working in the fields, slaves created what later became Brazil's earliest form of capoeira, disguising fighting techniques as folk dancing.” (BBC News) Capoeira comes in different forms such as ‘Regional’ and ‘Angola’. Capoeira regional is faster and was created after Angola, Angola was the original form and tends to be slower and played lower to the ground. 
Capoeira is like a martial arts dance between two people, they go along with the orchestra who plays with them. The people who play capoeira are athletes as well as artists, there is skill and strategy involved when playing with one another, it can be seen similar to a ritual. The word Capoeira refers to a time when African slaves would practice, “N’Golo (a ritual), turning their souls, spirits and bodies into instruments of freedom to rise up against the oppression of the slavery system…” (Ecamar) They used capoeira to express themselves and to train themselves in a time when that right was taken away from them. The instructor of capoeira is very friendly as well. “'Helping the weaker' is a principle of capoeira, and more experienced capoeiristas will work with you at your level.” (Murphy) It’s about being a part of the community, the stronger the individual the stronger the group becomes. Currently, at UCSD there is an opportunity to take a capoeira beginning class for only $43-$53. To be able to sign up for the class you have to register for UCSD recreation and then you are set to learn capoeira. 
 

Parallel to this is Haiti’s own religion of Vodou which stems from African ancestry. Haitian Vodou focuses primarily on the well-being of the person and community. Haitian Vodou also draws and has mixed with Christianity, same with Capoeira Angola, which has ties to paganism and Christianity when it was first brought to Brazil. The term used for the combination between Christianity and African religion is called Candomblé. Haitian Vodou is flexible and democratic similar to capoeira, where it is dependent on those who participate. Haitian Vodou is a practice and way of life, it is more involved than capoeira is but both still involve the community. Vodou was developed between the 16th and 19th centuries and was created from traditional African religions as well as the combination of Catholicism. The people who practice Haitian Vodou believe, “Everything in the world, (plant, animal or mineral) shares chemical, physical, and genetic properties. This forms a type of unity called cosmological unity that creates spirits of things.  (Michel p.100) In essence, everyday Vodou is practiced with how people interact with one another. 

Beyond the Beyond art of capoeira and Haitian Vodou, Haitians in Brazil have also embraced the culture and music there. Brazil is known for its rich music and festivals such as Samba, Axe, and the famous festival of Carnival. Haitian migrants also brought music and culture with them such as, “konpa, rap kreyòl, reggae, bachata, reggaeton, merengue, twoubadou, gospel music”(Santos) Just like in Haiti, Haitians use music as a tool that addresses current living conditions and crises in the state they live in. As what has been addressed in class, the people of Haiti identify themselves as Haitians even when living in another country. They are proud of that identity and keep the Haitian spirit alive wherever they go. Haitians in Brazil are doing something similar to what the RaRa festival was in Haiti. Back in 2018, a Haitian artist residing in Brazil mixed, “freestyle hip hop verses and a sort of political campaign jingle chorus over a digitalized breakdance beat, the song was an overt manifestation of support for Workers Party (PT) candidate Fernando Haddad”(Santos) Similar to the RaRa festivals seen in Haiti where artists and leaders would sing and dance about the current state of Haiti and addressed issues of discrimination and inequality in politics. The same can now be seen in Haitian music in Brazil. The video to the right is of Surprise69’s video called “Lula livre” which has a voice overlay of his thoughts of the elections in Brazil. 

Soccer:
Haiti and Brazil are both countries with huge numbers of soccer fans. 1998 Radio Haiti broadcast a show talking about why Haitian soccer fans supported Brazil's national team.