Find in Library

The politics of « racial » classification in Brazil. This paper traces the genealogy of « racial » taxonomies in Brazil arguing that recent policies which focus on the « black population » or the « black community » depend upon a belief that Brazilian society is neatly divided into « blacks » and « not blacks », thus superseding taxonomies which produce ambiguous « racial » categories based on the social « appearance » of individuals. The paper argues that such new political orientation may be a form of self fulfilling prophecy, bringing into being that which it assumed to exist.