The preservation and dissemination of African and Afro-Brazilian history and culture based on collecting in information units in Brazil

Abstract

This research aims to identify the presence of collections (of objects and bibliographic) that represent the history of blacks and African cultural traditions in Brazil. The specific objectives are to talk about collecting; discuss the preservation of African and Afro-Brazilian memory and culture and highlight the main information units with collections representing African and Afro-Brazilian culture. The dissemination of African and Afro-Brazilian memory is potentiated by these collections, since collecting artifacts and documents that portray black history and culture represents an act of resistance and evidence of the cultural practices of black populations. It has a theoretical and bibliographical approach, with critical and reflexive purpose based on the theories of collecting and memory. Within the Brazilian context, the main units of specialized information, the preservation in various types of collections that contribute to the conservation and strengthening of the memory, history, culture and identity of Africans and Afro-Brazilians were identified through mappings. These collector units can be classified as follows: African Study Centers (6 institutions), Afro-Brazilian Study Centers (139 institutions) and Afros Museums (36 institutions), between public and private organizations. These collections are formed by informational objects that identify historical periods, recording a past, which is remembered through memory, intensified by objects, whose meanings, through representations, are present in the individual's mind and give meaning to the experience. Linked to oral information, collections represent valuable sources of information and knowledge. Therefore, records such as reports, inventories, museum objects function as primary information to unravel and represent past histories and cultures preserving the memory of populations of African origin in Brazil. For future research it is important to select a private museum to identify objects, reconstitute their origins and meanings for both the museum and the surrounding community.