Brazil // Little Brazil, Manhattan & Astoria, Queens.
Has the country been in the news lately? If so, for what? Lately, whenever I see Brazil in the news it’s about the Presidential election. The election is October 2,2022 and if needed, will be October 30, 2022. The election is between current President Jair Bolsonaro and former President Lula de Silva. There’s a lot of tension between supporters of both candidates, so much so, one stabbed another a few days ago. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bolsonaro-fan-kills-lula-backer-brazil-election-tensions-mount-2022-09-09/
How many live in the US? In the tristate area? How many are in the international diaspora? How many in the home country? According to NYCgo, it is estimated that more than 50,000 Brazilians live in the New York Metro area. Approximately 65,000 Brazilians in the tristate area, according to migrationpolicy.org. In 2019 the United States Census Bureau American Community Survey estimated that there were 499,272 Americans who would report Brazilian ancestry. (451,000 in 2017). 4.2 million Brazilians are in the international diaspora, including the United States.
In the tristate area, where do they live? According to migrationpolicy.org, they live in New York, Newark and Jersey City, New Jersey, as well as Bridgeport, Stamford and Norwalk, Connecticut. However, according to New York Latin Culture Magazine, Brazilian New York City is in Little Brazil, Manhattan; Astoria, Queens; and Newark, New Jersey. Little Brazil is on 46th St between Fifth & Sixth Avenue.
https://www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/us-immigrant-population-metropolitan-area
What types of jobs do a significant percentage of them have? In chapter 5 of Little Brazil: An Ethnography of Brazilian Immigrants in New York City by Maxine L. Margolis says Brazilians in New York City do anything available to them; such as: “busing tables, shining shoes, cleaning houses, driving a call cab, dancing in a go-go bar, pouring cement, or selling books on the street.”
Why did they come to New York/the US? When? In 2017, an increase of Brazilians came to the US due to conditions such as a recession which caused unemployment as well as inflation.Those who arrived in the 1980s-1990s came here to make 4 times as much money than they would at home. They planned to stay for three to five years to work before going home. This is called yo-yo migration, especially if done more than once.
What are some major organizations/advocacy groups/resources in this community? Brazilian Consulate NYC . Brazil Foundation – (https://www.brazilfoundation.org/) helps Brazilians with any help they may need. Brazil Ahead – founded in 2007, teaches Portuguese to a variety of ages ( 3 and up ) in New York City. SOB otherwise known as Sound of Brazil, which is a live music venue created to expose the music and heritage of the Afro-Latino Diaspora to all who go there. Brazilian Endowment for the Arts supports artists in many mediums who’s works contain Brazilian culture. The Brazilian American Chamber of Commerce (https://brazilcham.com/) holds important discussions that are helpful to understanding Brazil, which topics such as economics, politics, inclusion, and more.
Do they have local media house/s? If so, list them. CNNBrasil, GloboNews, The Rio Times.
List/link the major media houses in the home country. Globo, Bandeirantes, RBS, Record and Folha. Are they reliable? Due to heavy government interference, I do not feel that they are reliable. What is the press landscape like there? Brazil is ranked at 110 out of 180 on the press freedoms list by RSF. The current President, Jair Bolsonaro is not a fan of journalists or the media and regularly attacks them in his speeches, according to RSF. Two journalists, and one media worker have been killed in Brazil this year. One journalist is currently in prison.
In the homeland what is the GDP per capita? Where does that rank in the world? What are the major industries? GDP per capita in Brazil is 6,796.84 USD (2020) and is expected to reach 11200.00 USD by the end of 2022, according to Trading Economics. Iron, steel, and automobile assembly are a few of Brazil’s major industries.
Name of the NY consul general. How long has he/she been in the role? The Consulate General of Brazil in New York is Maria Nazareth Farani Azevêdo. She has been in this role for 4-5 years, from 2017 to present. She was consul general from 2008 to 2013 as well.
Are there any restaurants, bars, small businesses etc. that are owned/frequented by members of the immigrant community? Are there any other informal community spaces you can identify in the city? NYCgo created a great list of the best places to get to feel immersed in Brazilian culture. For example, a shop called Buzios, which is called the Brazilian market of Manhattan and the products are directly from Brazil. SOB, or Sound of Brazil seems like an important community space.
Give three potential story ideas.
1.) Zouk Festival returns to New York City after Covid puts it on hold for two years. My plan ( access permitting ) is to attend the event to interview and photograph the artists ( who dance as well as teach ). I want to report on the topic of Brazilian dance and how important it is to their culture. On the official website they list their focus as, ” To educate students of all levels in Brazilian Zouk and Lambada and keep with the mission to continuously grow BZ-L throughout the US by raising awareness through teachings, live performances, and connections.” I’m thinking of making this a photography project, with sound bites from the interviews to help tell the story.
2.) Last semester I learned about the lack of sanitation in favelas, so I would like to write a story on how Covid has made these areas more dangerous for those who live in them. My hope is to be able to be connected to people in Brazil through the creator of Coco Zap, Gilberto Vieira. Coco Zap documents dangers such as broken pipes, garbage collection in Mare ( one of the largest favelas) and more. Community members have the ability to come together via whatsapp chat that was created by Coco zap, which is a data_labe project for mapping, advocacy and citizen participation on basic sanitation in poor areas.
3.) I’m still working on developing this idea further, however, I want to interview community members at local Brazilian spaces, such as Sound of Brazil, and the market Buzios, and restaurants to highlight Brazilian Culture in NYC. As of right now, I feel a video would capture this best.