Brazil’s Two Africas, or which Africa to find in what Brazil?

The article investigates the idea of Africa as central to theimagining of the Brazilian nation. It agues that the popular beliefsand the black movement differ significantly in their views ofBrazil as well as the images of Africa they each use to explain theplace of black people in the New World. Thereby the meaning ofboth Brazil and Africa are a matter of conflict depending onwhether Brazil is seen to be a racial democracy or fraught withstructural racism, and whether Africa is a place of famine, civilwar and deceases having lost its past glory or in fact a gloriousplace of proud kings and queen. Each picture of Africa and Brazilconnotes different positions for black Brazilians. The picture isfurther complicated by the Roots Tourism from North Americarecombining the elements from each to create a place of origin, anAfrica in Brazil