Black Women Mobilizing: Intersectionality in Urban Land Rights Struggles in Brazil with Keisha-Khan Perry

In Brazil and throughout the African diaspora rarely are black women, especially poor black women, considered leaders of social movements, much less political theorists. While black women are at the heart of the struggle for urban housing and land rights in Salvador, they are virtually ignored. The public image of black women, particularly those who live in poor neighborhoods, is that they lack the knowledge and political sophistication needed to organize social movements. This presentation explores how and why black women are the main ones interpreting the racial, gender, and class dynamics of urban-development policies and have radicalized local communities. Perry argues that Black women who organize as blacks, women, and poor people provide key insights on precisely how intersectionality is mobilized for social change. This talk bridges the scholarly gap between the black feminist theorization and the grassroots practice of intersectionality. Speaker: Keisha-Khan Perry, Assistant Professor of Africana Studies, Brown University