Corpo-comunicação: um estudo sobre a ginga feminista angoleira

Abstract

This thesis places the body in the context of communication from the perspective of decolonial feminism. From the articulation of Angolan capoeirista women, when discussing the asymmetric relationships of gender and ethnicity, the thesis builds on body-communication to reflect several issues in the theoretical-academic and practical-activist spheres. It aims to propose a transformative communication, conceived through the prism of decoloniality, embracing the knowledge of the body at stake. When using Capoeira Angola as an educational practice, the epistemology of ginga (swing) is used in the production and construction of knowledge. The triggered communication is structured in horizontal, territorialized models, reflected in Latin American theories. It transcends the colonialist understanding and proposes a communication engaged in social transformation. Ever since its creation, Capoeira has gone from a marginalized practice to an internationally spread Brazilian sport, currently found in more than 160 countries. In this process, the women’s struggle for autonomy, space and respect within Capoeira points to transformative changes, with the recognition and better organization of leaders. The thesis triggers two units to read this reality, namely, the life path of two female Capoeira Angola Masters who founded their independent groups – Mestra Elma and Mestra Cristina, and of the event called Chamada de Mulher, of the Nzinga de Capoeira Angola Group, as a fundamental movement for the dissemination of Angolan feminism, a concept based on practical actions of organization and social management of knowledge, which has contributed to the construction of new representations of women in Capoeira, and changes in the social-media imaginary. The transformative communication understood in this thesis contributes to the broader debate in the university and the establishment of a plural, democratic and committed society in the fight against racism, sexism and all forms of inequality.