Greetings!
Well, like the title says, I’m gonna start a blog series called, “The roots of Capoeira Angola”.
But before I do that, I want you to watch this video I posted here, from “THE PROFESSOR”.
So, you guys may be wondering, “Why post a couple of about Hip-Hop history?”
“What the hell does this have to do with Capoeira?”
Well, I’ll tell you.
This video on Hip Hop history has many parallels with the many arguments about the history of capoeira going around.
From the time that our African ancestors were brought here to this hemisphere, there has always been a tendency from non-afro descendants to “creolize”, Co opt, and claim as their own anything that was created by blacks, or came from African culture, while at the same time, demonizing the very same black people who created it.
To see a example of this, click HERE.
Or watch this.
It’s like there’s a HUGE aversion out there for people to admit or acknowledge that African descended people could create or maintain a cultural practice on their own, without the help or “input” from other cultures.
I explain some of how and why this is in detail on the “THE EFFECTS OF HIS-STORY” page.
I also explained that for a long time now, there has been a HUGE DEBATE about Capoeira’s origins, which I believe is because “certain entities” in the capoeira “universe” as it is, want to give a capoeira a more “Universally Brazilian” origin, and to push the African roots aside, and worse yet, to DENY them, in order to give them a sense of “ownership” to the art, to justify taking control of how it’s taught and practiced, and to try and deny the actual descendants of the art’s creators to have much real power in capoeira.
I said elsewhere on this blog that for far too long, other cultures have been taking over the narrative of my ancestor’s history and culture, and controlled what the world thinks about us.
That applies to Capoeira, that applies to Hip Hop, and EVERY other cultural manifestation that African Diasporic people has “gifted” to the world.
Now that Capoeira in it’s many forms has spread around the world, It’s now very important that WE African descended people take back control of OUR STORY here in the Americas. Hopefully, this series I’m creating will help out in this mission.
I don’t know how long this series will be, it could be 100 posts or more, or it could be just 1 post. But, I’m looking forward to starting this journey, as much as I hope you’re looking forward to reading it.
Jogo Corpo Fechado 