Sapientia and knowledge of the african-catarina matrix

paths to an african-Brazilian epistemology

Abstract

The stories of community experiences of “Cafuzas” Communities register in their memories a multiplicity of beliefs and knowledge about their trajectory of fighting for a life in and with dignity in Santa Catarina state (“Cafuzas meaning mix of negro and Indian blood). This work seeks to add and contribute to a set of reflections regarding contemporary epistemologies from other beliefs and knowledge, contrary to what the Eurocentric thought established as the instrument of balance in interpreting the acts and behavior of human beings in global perspective during the XIX and XX centuries. The contributions of beliefs and knowledge of “cafuzas” communities for scientific-technological knowledge and reflections present themselves as differentials and reference points for possibilities of life in the Planet and quality in the relationships between subjects, groups and societies. Thinking, knowing and integrating this knowledge in the contemporary agendas is one of the challenges and conducting lines of this work.