Discursos sobre a afrodescendência no Rio de Janeiro da Belle Époque

Abstract

In this work our aim was to investigate and discuss the various discourses about the Afro-descendant presence in Rio de Janeiro, during the years of the so-called Belle Époque, specially after the great urban reform that was held in the city, which forced the poorest classes mainly composed of African descendants to live in less privileged regions, such as the hills and the workers' districts. In the prime areas where the reform would develop its main innovations a culture of modernity would occur, which would eventually get in patent conflict with the culture of the residents of less noble areas. The result would be the emergence of many speeches whose aim was to express the differences, establishing for the afro-descendants in the city a culture of exclusion. Our purpose in this work is to promote the analysis of the researched speeches, focusing on points where the African descendant image and the African culture tend to be classified in a negative way, because we understand that at that time the country was still beginning to mould many of the myths and notions that up to today shape racial relations in Brazil.