The The reign of the Congos in the city of Itapira:

culture and racial relations

Abstract

This article aims to deepen knowledge about the congadas of the city of Itapira, located in the interior of the state of São Paulo and which are still present today, being the largest cultural and religious expression in the municipality. We will seek to delve deeper into their trajectory and the racial relations established in the space in which they were formed, as well as place black people back in the historiography of Itapira. Since the city of Itapira was created from the enslavement of black men and women brought to the growing region of western São Paulo due to the planting of coffee. One of the cultural results of the settlement of black people was the emergence of congos or congadas as they are known in the city. Our purpose is to analyze them taking into account the erasures and distortions constructed by local elites, together with the discourses of racial harmony that corroborate the maintenance of a hegemonic history of the city without the presence of conflicts, violence and symbolic and concrete disputes over the power.