The abolition of slavery in Brazil was the result of a long, slow process that was concluded through a lot of popular mobilization. Unlike what supporters of the monarchy claimed, the abolition of slavery Did not happen by a kind decision of the Princess Isabel, but it was the result of an intense popular mobilization that pressured the Brazilian monarchy to abolish slave labor in Brazil.
The abolition of slavery in Brazil can be explained by a combination of factors, highlighting:
abolitionist struggle carried out by the slaves themselves;
mobilization of abolitionist groups that supported slaves;
political mobilization of a certain wing of Brazilian society.
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Other factors can also be pointed out in relation to this issue, such as the international pressure for Brazil to abolish this form of labor exploitation, since the slavery was already seen as a delay to the civilizational pattern that was consolidated in the second half of the nineteenth century and also because slavery is an obstacle to the development of
capitalism here in Brazil.
Commemorative stamp celebrating the pioneering spirit of Amazonas as one of the first states to abolish slave labor.**
Historical context
The abolition of slavery in Brazil was a subject that had been at the center of our political agenda since the independence of the country was conquered in 1822. The economic and political elite of our country knew that the international recognition of our independence, especially with regard to English recognition, involved the abolition of work. slave.
The posture of our country, however, was to postpone any commitment made, whether with the end of the slave trade, or with the abolition of slavery. Due to the profile and interests of our country's economic elite, slave labor, instead of being fought, was reinforced.
The slave trade, for example, remained very active in our country until 1850. Its end only actually happened, through the LawEusebiusinWants, because of English pressures and the risk of war with England.
The desire of the slave elites in Brazil was that the end of slave labor should be slow and gradual and only happen when the last slave died. It was taking this idea into account that slavery remained legal in our country for more than 38 years after the prohibition of the slave trade.
The abolitionist debate in Brazil only gained strength from the 1870s onwards, with the end of Paraguay War. Already at the beginning of that decade, the emergence of new abolitionist associations was registered. As a result of the actions of these entities, the groups interested in maintaining slavery intervened and opted for gradual solutions.
This resulted in the approval of the law of the free womb, approved in September 1871 and whose main objective was to control the abolitionist cause. The law worked as follows: from that date, all children of slaves would be considered free, but would be obliged to work for a time as compensation. The law stipulated that the child from the womb of the slave would be free:
to the 8 years (in this case, the owner of the slave would receive an indemnity of 600 thousand réis);
to the 21 years (in this case, the slave would not receive any compensation).
The Law of the Womb of the Free, from the perspective of slaveholders, managed to achieve its main objective: to make the abolitionist movement temporarily lose strength. The movement only recovered in the 1880s, and the mobilization of part of society and of the slaves themselves was fundamental for the cause to succeed.
The growth of the abolitionist cause in the 1880s is clearly perceptible by the growth in the number of associations that worked for the cause. Historians Lilia Schwarcz and Heloísa Starling highlight the role of the Brazilian Society against Slavery and the Abolitionist Confederation|1|.
In addition, the number of publications defending the abolitionist cause soared, and influential people such as CastroAlves and JoaquimNabuco, joined the cause. Other prominent names in the defense of abolitionism in this decade were Luísgamma, JosephofSponsorship, AndrewReboucas, between others.
In this context, in defense of abolition, the publication of articles and pamphlets and the performance of public acts, such as processions and other types of demonstrations, became common. The 1880s, however, saw a type of demonstration that was fundamental to the campaign's success: civil disobedience.
The great highlight at that time was the slaves' struggle itself, since leaks and rebellions they became common in the period and demonstrated that the situation was beyond the control of government entities. Lilia Schwarcz and Heloísa Starling emphasize that, “aware that slavery lost its legitimacy and consensus, groups of slaves they gained in boldness and articulation, rebelling, running away, committing crimes, clamoring for improvements in their living conditions and for autonomy"|2|.
The result of this was the substantial increase in the number of quilombos, which emerged to shelter the great flow of slaves who had escaped from their captivity. The outskirts of the city of Rio de Janeiro and Santos witnessed an enormous amount of quilombos formed with the in order to, in addition to sheltering escaped slaves, organize forms of resistance and provide assistance to others slaves.
These quilombos are defined by historian Eduardo Silva as quilombosabolitionists|3|, as they had politically articulated leaders to mediate between society and runaway slaves, in addition to providing them support, encourage the escape of slaves, shelter them in hiding places or move them to Ceará (state in which slave labor was abolished in 1884).
Popular support and pressure were other important forms of action and resistance. Advertising the movement was important to guarantee its support. In this sense, a symbol became very influential, and the gesture of carrying this symbol at the time became a political act, as defined by Lilia Schwarcz and Heloísa Starling|4|. We are talking about camelliaswhite.
In the late 1880s, the white camellia became a symbol of abolitionists in Brazil.
This flower was cultivated by a quilombo located in Leblon and was used many times to identify abolitionists in actions considered more risky.
Finally, in addition to this, there is an important issue. the state became ineffective in the fight against all forms of resistance to slavery in our country, since the police and the army began to turn a blind eye due to the number of occurrences. Thus, the abolitionist movement placed itself as a “risk” for the order of the Empire, making the maintenance of slavery in the country politically, economically and socially unfeasible.
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Golden Law
Princess Isabel was responsible for signing the Lei Áurea on May 13, 1888.***
It was in this context that slavery was abolished in Brazil. It was not the result of Princess Isabel's benevolence, but the result of strong popular and political pressure. The Empire, with no way out, chose to guarantee the abolition of slavery when João Alfredo, a politician from the Conservative Party, proposed the project of LawGolden.
The project advanced and, on the day May 13, 1888, a PrincessIsabel, as princess regent of Brazil, she signed the document that guaranteed the abolition of slavery immediately and without reparation. About 700 thousand slaves gained their freedom, but without social and economic integration measures being carried out. This ensured that black people continued to be extremely marginalized in Brazilian society.
Summary
THE abolition of slavery it was a slow and gradual process that extended in Brazil throughout much of the 19th century. The pressure of the abolitionist movement and the disturbances caused by the forms of resistance and struggle of the slaves forced the Empire to abolish this form of work.
With the Lei Áurea, blacks remained marginalized in society, since integration policies social and economic issues were not carried out, and racism remained a serious problem in society. Brazilian. With the Lei Áurea, signed on May 13, 1888, approximately 700,000 slaves gained freedom.
|1| SCHWARCZ, Lilia Moritz and STARLING, Heloisa Murgel. Brazil: a biography. São Paulo: Companhia das Letras, 2015, p. 305.
|2| Idem, p. 308.
|3| SILVA, Eduardo. The camellias of Leblon and the abolition of slavery. To access, click on here.
|4| SCHWARCZ, Lilia Moritz and STARLING, Heloisa Murgel. Brazil: a biography. São Paulo: Companhia das Letras, 2015, p. 309.
*Image credits: Everett Historical and Shutterstock
**Image credits: irisphoto1 and Shutterstock
***Image credits: Georgios Kollides and Shutterstock
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