Newsletter 2003 - 2004

Newsletter 2003 - 2004 Graduate Student Research Nicholas Coronel-Viteri is completing a Masters thesis in International Studies based on his field research on the Brazilian Landless Peasant Movement in Brazil. He holds undergraduate degrees in International Relations and Biology from his home country of Ecuador, From Poor To Peasant: and is also completing a concurrent MA degree in Community Regional The Struggle for Land and Planning. Human Dignity in Brazil Slavery and land tenure have fundamen- Brazil by the FMI and the World Bank. By Nicholas Coronel-Viteri tally shaped the history of this country. The MST provides land to its members Brazil was the last Latin American coun- by organizing urban and rural citizens in Brazil is the largest country in Latin try to abolish slavery in 1888; through- acampamentos (known as lona preta, or America, with 8.5 million square kilome- out 358 years of slavery, millions of Afri- black plastic, because of the material used ters and a population of more than 175 can slaves were brought there. As of to- to build the minute shacks in which million people. It is also a land of pro- day, it has the second largest black popu- people live) on haciendas throughout the found contrasts: on the one hand, Brazil lation in the world (Nigeria has the first). country. People live in these is one of the ten largest economies in the After slavery was abolished, blacks were acampamentos from one to three years, world, allowing for a small percentage of unable to own land, and the best lands until the government legalizes their situa- the population to indulge in luxurious were given to the white migrants that ar- tion by buying the land from the haci- consumption paralleled only in the “first rived to Brazil from Europe (Italy, Ger- enda owner and “upgrading” the world:” ten percent of the richest Brazil- many, and Poland in particular). Since this acampamentos to asentamentos (where ians own 49 percent of properties in the period, land tenure became a fundamen- land ownership is individual) or agrovilas country. On the other hand, ten percent tal problem of Brazilian society, a prob- (where land ownership is communal). The of the poorest Brazilians do not own even lem that has not been solved even today. requirement imposed by the government one percent of the properties in the coun- MST: 20 Years of Land Redistribution on both the asentados and the residents try, death squads attempt to eliminate the A movement that is attempting to resolve of an agrovila is that they cultivate the 8 million street children of Brazil on a daily this situation is the MST (Movimento do land. In the acampamentos, people are basis 3 million children work, and 10 mil- Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra), or as educated about the movement and the lion Brazilians are unemployed. Thirty- it is known in English, the Brazilian Land- struggle for land and equality in Brazil; two million of Brazilians earn less than 30 less Peasant Movement. Many scholars they also hold peaceful marches through- dollars per month, and 51.4 million live and activists believe that the MST is the out the towns and cities of Brazil, request- with a salary of less than 60 dollars per largest and most important social move- ing their rights to land ownership. At the month. ment of its magnitude to appear in the acampamentos, people not only encoun- world in the last two decades. Since its ter very difficult living conditions, but the •African Studies p. 2 formation as a movement in 1984, it has possibility of being eliminated by the •B.A. Honors p. 3 provided 15 million hectares of land to armed forces of the landowners who, sup- •Alumni Notes p. 4 more than 350,000 Brazilian families. This ported by the police and the government, •Graduate Student Profile p. 5 movement has struggled for a system- have committed more than one brutal •Announcements p. 5 atrocity against the members of the move- •Burmese Recipe p. 6 atic and comprehensive agrarian reform •Roving Reporter p. 7 for Brazil, where 46 percent of the land is ment. Once an asentamento is formed, the •Donor Support p. 8 owned by 1 percent of the population. peasants start to farm the land, with the •Directors’ Corner p. 8-9 More than that, however, and under the aid of agricultural technicians who are •In Memorium - Louise Thurber p. 9 slogan “for a Brazil without large land- also members of the movement. These •Nataraja: a Living Tradition p. 10 technicians teach organic agriculture and •Meet Our Staff p. 11 holdings (latifundios),” the MST calls for animal raising. The MST also works INSIDE THIS ISSUE THIS INSIDE •Keep in Touch p. 12 a profound transformation of the current neoliberal economic model, imposed on closely with other Brazilian movements Continued on page 2 University of Oregon From Poor To Peasant . cont. from page 1 that struggle for radical changes in their society, with the goal of 3 to 4 meters long to 2 meters wide (the lonas pretas). In of transforming some of the many inequalities of the country. these small shacks, people live, eat, sleep, but more importantly, Over its years as a movement, the MST has made diverse and fight for human dignity, for a piece of land that will give them significant achievements in education and training, produc- the opportunity to improve their living conditions, and the fu- tion, organization, and advocacy. The movement has also de- ture of their children. veloped alliances with other Latin American rural movements, One of the things that impacted me the most about my experi- including the Latin American Congress of Rural Organizations ence in Porto Alegre, was having interaction with white peas- (CLOC). ants, who had formerly lived in extreme poverty. I think that An Internship in Turning People’s Lives Around without realizing it I had internalized the postcolonial reality of I had the outstanding opportunity to work with the regional my home country, Ecuador, in which people considered “white” MST in Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul) from March to July are not poor and are not peasants. In Brazil, the poor came in all 2003, as part of my International Studies internship. As an in- different colors (although statistically speaking, the majority of tern, I worked closely with technicians, leaders, and members people living under conditions of extreme poverty are indeed of the MST in the small agrovila of Cimarrao (this and all other black). names are pseudonyms), composed of 30 families. I lived with a MST Brings Message of Hope to World’s Dispossessed family in the agrovila, worked the land, learned about organic Working with the MST was a life-changing experience for me. agriculture, and participated in meetings and marches during As a person born and raised in Ecuador, I have been in close my stay there. The agrovila was a good example of the suc- contact (and experienced myself) with poverty and injustices. cessful efforts of the MST: its members were formerly peasants At times, I have felt that there is no hope to solve the ills of our whose land had been taken away by large landowners, but they “third-world” nations. The MST brought back my hopes and were also carpenters, mechanics and former thieves, alcohol- desire to struggle for social justice. The level of social con- ics, drug addicts, or people without any particular skill. They sciousness, support and reciprocity of the people who were were viewed as the “scum” of society, who were willing to turn members of the MST and lived in these sites impressed me. their life around in order to become part of the MST and start a They saw themselves, not as individuals struggling for their new life as peasants and community leaders. My friend own rights, but as members of a larger and more important Vanderberg, who was a former alcoholic without a profession collective. I also found that the movement emphasized the fact or future in neoliberal Brazil, particularly touched me. He had that the capitalist system-and not necessarily the weakness of been working with the MST for seven years, had been alcohol- an individual-caused incidents of drug addiction, prostitution, free during that time, and was a strong enthusiast and sup- or crime on individuals, and they offered hope for the transfor- porter of the movement. He commented to me that he was able mation of the individual within the collective, based on the to change his life around because, more than anything, he notions of reciprocity, comradeship and solidarity. The MST wanted his children to remember him as a dignified human be- brings hope for Brazilians, but also for Latin Americans in gen- ing. eral, and even for the world’s dispossessed. It brings the mes- The “scum” of society were now skilled workers who produced sage that sustainable rural development is not only possible milk, vegetables, grains, and raised chickens, pigs, and cattle but necessary; it brings the message that every human being for their own consumption and to sell on the market. Building has the right to aspire to a life lived with dignity. on my previous anthropological training, I felt the need to de- I would like to sincerely thank my faculty advisor, Dr. Linda velop comparisons between this example of successful land Fuller for her unconditional support in my experiences. I would tenure and earlier stages of development of the MST. With that also like to express my gratitude to Dr. Robert Proudfoot, in mind, I visited and stayed in acampamentos and director of the Center for Indigenous Cultural Survival, and asentamentos throughout the state of Rio Grande do Sul.

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