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Grassroots grow deep in Salvador, Brazil
The oldest favela (slum) in Salvador is Calabar. Though originally on the outskirts of the city, Calabar has been surrounded by the city, and while most homes have running water and electricity, it remains one of the poorest areas. Students walked down a narrow alley of colorful stoop shops and unfinished concrete apartments to reach Escola Alberto do Calabar. The primary school is run on community donations and non-government grants, and accepts any child between the ages of 3-15 on a first come, first served basis. There are no public schools in Calabar, and the school has a waiting list of 300 due to capacity in the small open-air building. Voyagers joined the students in playing soccer with balls donated by One World Futbol, engaged in language learning games.
Courtney Smith, business administration major at Southern University and A&M College, appreciated the opportunity to talk with the children.
“When the children started to shout their various class subjects to us you could not miss their desire to learn. Despite the language barriers, it was impossible to miss their need to gain as much insight into a new culture as we were trying to do with them.”
“I have never thought about how there are less and less people like me as I move through life, and never think about what my government had to do or not do with my success, but as I sat in the school in Salvador around eager playful children with high hopes about the future, my mind kept wandering between them and a question; what if I had attended public school because of financial constraints and depended on the government for my education? Where would I be?”
The class spent the second half of their day focusing on higher education at the Instituto Cultural Steve Biko (Steve Biko Institute). Just a few steps away from the Escadas do Camo, the stairs made famous by the 1960s Brazilian film O Pagador de Promessas, lies the institute’s bright yellow building. Founded in 1992, the institute prepares black students for Brazil’s college entrance exam, the vestibular. In the 81% black identified state of Bahia, only 20% of college graduates are black. The vestibular is notoriously difficult, and the poor first and secondary education most black students receive leave them with little chance of passing.
The institute also engages in street protests during carnivale to promote black rights and awareness. 5,000 Bahians have completed their course on “citizenship and black consciousness,” where students learn about black Brazilian leaders and are encouraged to take pride in their heritage.
After hearing student accounts firsthand of how culture impacts education, Jack Turney, student at University of San Diego, said, “I cannot imagine what it would be like to be slave to the cultures and ideologies of a hundred years ago, yet that is exactly what many Brazilian citizens go through. This concept of ‘mental slavery’ prevents them from feeling like they have any self of self-worth and drastically alters their level of self-esteem.”
Courtney Smith added, “I was very lucky to have this field lab the first day in Brazil. It was by far the best and most educational experience I have had during this whole semester at sea journey. This field lab gave me further insight into the daily life of a Brazilian, it showed me the financial struggles, education struggles and racial struggles that many Brazilians face from childhood into adulthood in turn creating a never-ending cycle.”
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