OUTREACH TO AFRO-BRAZILIANS - TAKING OBAMA TO THE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SAO PAULO 000182

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

STATE FOR WHA/BSC, BLAKENY VASQUEZ

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM SCUL SOCI PGOV INR KPAO BR
SUBJECT: OUTREACH TO AFRO-BRAZILIANS - TAKING OBAMA TO THE
QUILOMBOS

REF: 08 Sao Paulo 119

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED


1. (U) Summary: Traditional Afro-Brazilian community (quilombo)
leaders expressed admiration for President Obama and were pleased to
hear about the U.S.-Brazil Joint Action Plan Against Racism (JAPR)
during Poloff's February 10 visit to the Vale do Ribeira region of
Sao Paulo State. Quilombos are communities comprised of the
descendents of escaped slaves that are often economically
disadvantaged. Quilombo leaders want to improve their communities'
economic prospects, particularly through enhanced education, and the
GOB has worked in recent years to improve services to these
communities. Quilombos present excellent opportunities for outreach
and deepening our bilateral work on the U.S.-Brazil Joint Action
Plan Against Racism (JAPR). End Summary.

UP-CLOSE WITH THE QUILOMBOS
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2. (U) In a February 10 visit to three Quilombos near the city of
El Dorado in the Vale do Ribeira region of Sao Paulo State, (where
the bulk of Sao Paulo quilombos are located),Poloff met with ITESP
(Land Institute for the State of Sao Paulo) bureaucrats, local
elected officials, and traditional quilombo leaders and residents.
These included: ITESP Regional Coordinators Pedro Lima and Jose
Renato Lisboa; El Dorado City Councilman and former quilombo
community leader Jose Rodrigues da Silva; El Dorado City Council
member Franciny Regineli Cirino Lobo Ferreira; El Dorado Mayoral
representative Edson Ney Barbosa; and quilombo community leader Joao
Vitorino Soares da Mota.


3. (U) Quilombos are traditional Afro-Brazilian communities
originally founded by escaped slaves in remote areas. They hold
communal title to their lands and survive mostly on subsistence
farming and handicrafts. In Sao Paulo State, these communities are
small, ranging in size from as little as one to as many as 98
families. ITESP grants quilombos legal recognition and works with
the GOB to provide them with access to government assistance. Many
quilombos still await official recognition, which would make them
eligible for government support.

PRESIDENT AND JOINT ACTION PLAN ON RACISM ARE WELL RECEIVED
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4. (U) Poloff discussed the recent election of President Obama with
local representatives. They were universally pleased by his
success, although several continued to express surprise that he had
been elected. They were also generally unaware of the U.S.-Brazil
Joint Action Plan Against Racism (JAPR),but were happy to hear
about it and expressed hope that it would translate into greater
U.S. engagement in Brazil on topics concerning race.

VISITING THE QUILOMBOS
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5. (U) Jose Rodrigues accompanied Poloff on a visit to the
quilombos of Sao Pedro, Galvao and Ivaporunduva (where he once
served as the Community Leader and continues to serve in a secondary
role). He said that he and most of the quilombolas (members of
quilombo communities) in the region appreciated the help they had
received from the State including: training in animal, plant and
fish husbandry; the construction of a guest house to promote
tourism; an organic banana cooperative for the farmers; and an
artisanal workshop for the women. In some communities Poloff
visited, the State Secretariat of Housing had also provided bricks
and other raw materials for basic housing as well as access to
electricity and running water (in the form of a communal spigot).
Rodrigues noted that his community is excited by ITESP's plans to
construct a bridge over the nearby River Ribeira to connect the
local quilombos of Sao Pedro, Galvao and Ivaporunduva to the main
road.

SPECIALIZED EDUCATION AND THE DIGITAL DIVIDE
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6. (U) The quilombo communities visited had an elementary and
middle school that was tidy and well-supplied with text books, but
lacked library books and other resource materials. In keeping with
the March 2008 Joint Action Plan Against Racism between the U.S. and

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Brazil and its focus on education, Poloff donated Portuguese
language books on U.S. History, U.S. Government, and African
American artists to the school library. While the students had a
computer room, administrators noted that due to "technical
difficulties" the school is not connected to the Internet.
(Comment: The community center at Ivaporunduva received a corporate
donation of computers and reportedly has Internet access.)


7. (U) Soares da Mota remarked that the people in his community
have asked for specialized education for quilombo students. He
noted that teachers assigned to local schools come from various
parts of Sao Paulo State and often have no understanding of
quilombola history or traditions. He advocated hiring teachers from
within the quilombos so that quilombola children can have role
models and an understanding of their history. Students who wish to
continue their education past middle school must attend the
Brazilian equivalent of high school in nearby El Dorado. Rodrigues
and Soares da Mota added that they had a number of college graduates
among the younger quilombola generation, many of whom take advantage
of online college classes to complete their degrees.

COMMENT
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8. (SBU) Brazil's Afro-Brazilian quilombos are locked in a kind of
cultural and political limbo. While many await official recognition
to receive benefits, quilombo leaders struggle with the challenge of
both trying to preserve Afro-Brazilian traditions and promoting
development. Improving education is high on their agenda. The
Brazilian state, to its credit, is making efforts to legally
recognize more quilombos and to deliver services, but this is not a
rapid process.


9. (SBU) Both the JAPR and President Obama's election offer us an
opportunity to perform outreach to the quilombos, a key part of
Brazil's overall Afro-Brazilian population. Quilombo residents
admire Obama and would both appreciate and benefit from the delivery
of educational materials on the U.S. A small investment of time and
resources could yield solid benefits in terms of good will and in
developing contacts in rural regions not normally targeted by our
outreach efforts. End Comment.

STORY