O Zumbi dos Palmares he was born in the year 1655 and died in the year 1695. He was the last of the leaders of the Quilombo dos Palmares and also the most important and with historical relevance.
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Zumbi dos Palmares he gained respect and admiration after showing his skills as a warrior. This conveyed an impression of leadership and general military knowledge to its quilombola partners.
To talk about Zumbi, it is necessary to consider many aspects related to history of Brazil and to the colonizing system that was implanted here.
In 1680, Zumbi assumed the leadership of the Quilombo de Palmares, previously led by his uncle. It strengthened the security of Quilombo in general. He knew that despite a peace treaty signed earlier with the representatives of Portugal, he would eventually have new problems. That's what ended up happening. The peace treaty was signed in 1678. In 1694, a group of soldiers commanded by Domingos Jorge Velho, attacked the Quilombo. But, they were rejected. Later that month (January) they tried once again to invade Macacos the capital of Palmares in Serra da Barriga. The Portuguese government was even ready to destroy Quilombo. For this he organized an army of 11,000 men. This was never seen in history during the colonial period! The command of this army was left to a great landowner, Fernando Bernardo Vieira de Melo, helped by Sebastião Dia Mineli and pioneer Domingo Jorge Velho. With the help of cannons, other weapons and ammunition, Palmares was defeated.
He knew that despite a peace treaty signed earlier with the representatives of Portugal, he would eventually have new problems. That's what ended up happening. The peace treaty was signed in 1678. In 1694, a group of soldiers commanded by Domingos Jorge Velho, attacked the Quilombo. But, they were rejected. Later that month (January) they tried once again to invade Macacos the capital of Palmares in Serra da Barriga. The Portuguese government was even ready to destroy Quilombo. For this he organized an army of 11,000 men. This was never seen in history during the colonial period! The command of this army was left to a great landowner, Fernando Bernardo Vieira de Melo, helped by Sebastião Dia Mineli and pioneer Domingo Jorge Velho. With the help of cannons, other weapons and ammunition, Palmares was defeated.
On the night of February 6, 1694, the cannons of Portugal spit fire on the quilombolas, destroying that stronghold of resistance. Zombie escaped with his life. He was 39 years old. It was lame because of the countless battles fought. His head was put on a prize by the government. He was betrayed by one of his comrades who had been arrested, Antônio Soares, who ended up revealing, under torture, the whereabouts of his friend. He knew Zombie's hideout. So he looked for him in the Serra, ironically called “Serra dos Dois Irmãos” and stabbed him on arrival. The hidden invaders opened fire and murdered all of Zumbi's companions. Zumbi still fought bravely, even though he was wounded, until he dropped dead at the murderous hands of the São Paulo bandeirantes on the morning of November 20, 1695. Her body was taken to the city of Porto Calvo and presented to the chamber officials. After the record of recognition was drawn up, his head was cut off and sent to Recife. There she stayed in the sun and rain for years on end to set an example against future rebellions.
As we can see from the existence of Quilombos, slavery was not peacefully accepted by its victims. Many just didn't fight because there wasn't the slightest conditions for it. Unfortunately, they chose to commit suicide or simply fell ill. They entered into “banzo”, a kind of depression typical of those who were violently torn from their families. Celebrating November 20 is to remember that Brazil has a historic debt to blacks. There were millions who shed their blood for the “kind mother” and, many are still forgotten, are under-employed or unemployed. It is proven that violence and lack of education affect blacks more than whites. We need new Zombies, who raise their voices in defense of a group that, even today, suffers the consequences of a past they did not choose.
Text source: Wonderful text written by: Geraldo Gabriel Priest.
Book: Zumbi dos Palmares, by Marcos Antônio Cardoso and Maria de Lourdes Siqueira. Maza editions, Belo Horizonte, 1995.
Zumbi dos Palmares
Son of Sabina, husband of Dandara, Zumbi dos Palmares he was a great leader of the Quilombo dos Palmares in the 17th century from the age of 25 onwards. He was born free in the state of Alagoas in 1655 and represents, along with others who fought, the black resistance to slavery.
As a child, he was given to a Catholic priest and called Francis. Until the age of 15, he was baptized, learned to speak Portuguese and helped the priest in religious celebrations. At 15 years of age, however, he returned to the quilombo.
In 1675, the quilombo was attacked by Portuguese colonial troops and Zumbi, then 20 years old and with a new name, stood out for his bravery and courage on the battlefield. Five years later he became the leader of the quilombo, which prospered under his administration. This fact caught the attention of the Portuguese ruler, who, in 1694, organized a powerful expedition under the command of pioneer Domingos Jorge Velho to attack Palmares.
The blacks resisted as long as they could, but they were defeated. Although wounded, Zumbi managed to escape, but, betrayed by a companion, he was captured by the pioneer troops. Arrested at the age of 40, he was beheaded and entered Brazilian history as a symbol of black resistance against oppression.
When Zumbi was 20 years old, the quilombo was attacked by Portuguese soldiers. During the resistance, he stood out as a good warrior. In 1678, the governor of Pernambuco approached Ganga Zumba, Zumbi's uncle and the first leader of the Quilombo dos Palmares, with the aim of establishing agreements. Zumbi broke up with his uncle because he didn't accept the agreement and then became the leader of the community in 1680.
During his administration, the quilombo grew and won many battles. The planning, military knowledge and strategists to overthrow the white enemy and also Zumbi's courage was recognized by everyone.
In 1694, however, a major attack on Quilombo dos Palmares destroyed the community that had resisted for more than 90 years. Zombie managed to flee, but was betrayed and captured by the scout troops who commanded the battle. The following year, at age 40, he was beheaded on 20 November.
Quilombo dos Palmares was a community formed by runaway slaves from the plantations where they were violently exploited. About 30,000 people lived together freely and produced their own food and other subsistence items. At that time, the quilombo was located in da Barriga, in the then Capitania de Pernambuco, a region that today belongs to the municipality of União dos Palmares, in the Brazilian state of Alagoas.
Zumbi is considered one of the symbols of struggle, freedom and recognized by the black community as a great leader in our history. He is proof that the blacks who were enslaved around here were not inert, submissive and alienated. Also a symbol of black protagonism in our resistance and fight against slavery.
The National Day of Black Consciousness honors this figure and was instituted by law 12,519 of 2003, sanctioned by the president at the time. Most Brazilian cities still do not consider the day as a holiday, but as shown in the reports published in Alma Preta, there are movements, meetings, activities, discussions, protests, marches, among others, taking place.
The hero's body was dismembered to show him lifeless, his head inert and without a fight, but his resisting actions inspire us to this day. A song by the band Secos e Molhados says: And enveloped in a severed storm, spring is held between my teeth. We are trees, flowers, millions of seeds that perpetuate the legacy and the courage to know that our ancestors exist.
Until today the black people have resisted with what they have. It has survived even with a scrapped health and education, with constant threats from the bourgeoisie that insists on restricting access to public services. Even with the genocide growing over the decades and killing more and more young black people, leaving families devastated by the effects of this genocide. Even with little or no legal apparatus and media or social commotion with the periodic massacres in the poorest communities
The history of the struggle ran through the centuries and influenced the abolition, as the poet Luís Carlos da Vila said, in memorable samba from Vila Isabel. There were many battles until the 19th century began a slow and restricted process to put an end to slavery. Today, after 127 years of the law that abolished it, there is still a lot to be done to build a society with equality. Joaquim Nabuco stated that the delay in ending slavery would impose on society to live with its effects for a hundred years. The forecast was below: the effects persist in staying. Ex-captives did not have the same conditions guaranteed to European immigrants, who received land and benefits.
The black community still occupies the worst places in the social pyramid. Its presence is the majority in prisons and favelas. The 'Map of Violence' reports that in 2012 142% more blacks died proportionally and by firearms than whites. A perverse picture that takes us back to the 19th century, as murderers are rarely punished. This slaughter must stop now, with punishment for its perpetrators!
The implementation of affirmative action policies, notably quotas, has produced very interesting results. This positive scenario of social progress for black men and women has brought intolerance, racism, sexism and xenophobia. There were those who said that it was enough to have money not to suffer racism. Attacks on football players, artists and doctors belie this idea.
The great opportunity to combat racism lies in the implementation of the Racial Equality Statute, which provides for the implementation of affirmative actions and served as the basis for approval of quotas in the Supreme. In addition, we have the Decade of Afro-descendant Peoples declared by the UN, to intensify a set of public policies to combat racism and inequality.
It's time to pay homage to Zumbi dos Palmares, Dandara, the heroes of the Revolta dos Búzios, Luiza Mahin, Luís Gama, Castro Alves, João Cândido Felizberto and everyone who bequeathed us the love, freedom and achievements we enjoy today.
The word “zombie” probably came from the African term “zombe”, which means “ghost”, “spectrum”.
Captain Furtado de Mendonça was awarded fifty thousand reis by the monarch D. Pedro II of Portugal, after defeating and killing Zumbi with palms.
Black Consciousness Day is celebrated on the 20th of November. This date was chosen in honor of the day of Zumbi dos Palmares' death.
The name of Zumbi dos Palmares is honored in several places. Its name even baptizes a Faculty and the International Airport of Maceió/AL.
Quilombo dos Palmares was a kingdom formed by runaway slaves whose population at its height reached 20,000 people.
The Vila Isabel samba school paid homage to Zumbi dos Palmares with the plot “Kizomba, festival of the race”, in 1988
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