LAND GRABBING: 

In colonial Brazil, enslaved Africans who escaped from their bondage fled to the forests and mountains to form isolated communities called “quilombos.” Still in existence today, these Afro-descendent communities fight against continuous threats to their ancestral territory from migrants, settlers, and corporations who attempt to clear forests and seize farmlands for construction of railroads and highways, logging enterprises, large-scale ranching and farming, mega-dams, and even tourism purposes. Brazil’s 1988 constitution set the rights of quilombolas to their ancestral lands in stone. Yet, only a couple hundred land titles have been granted to quilombos by the government thus far. The videos below tell stories that protest land grabbing and celebrate the heritage and resistance of the Black quilombo communities of Brazil.