Candendê: tessituras entre vozes e histórias de resistência quilombola Barbacena/MG (c.1830 – Tempo presente)

Abstract

The current research aims to understand the formation and continuity, over time, of the Candendê quilombo. This fertile territory in food and tension emerged at the end of the 19th century in a cave existing between the municipalities of Barbacena and Ibertioga. In a zig-zag path between the past and the present, between my own memories and written sources, the research unravels the complex network of horizontal relationships formed by black and poor peasants and strengthened by marriages and cultural events. On the other hand, these same residents of the tangled black territorial space, establish vertical relationships with neighboring farmers, eager for land and cheap labor, as a way of preserving the quilombola peace. Candendê, now known as Ponto Chique do Martelo, faces an internal disruption affecting the achievement of life projects. And one of the consequences is the invisibility and the attempt to silence suffered by the community in its trajectory and sponsored by the Brazilian State. Talking about the Candendê quilombo is talking about resistance, resilience and a re-encounter with my own history