Description of the Activities

Afro Culture in the schools has been developed through presentations and courses, with an African or Afro-Brazilian theme. The following are description of the activities :

The “Hora de Griot”:

Oral traditions are very important to African culture. The griots are people who maintain and promote African oral history and culture. They are masters of the rhetorical arts, exceptional raconters of history, music, and poetry. Their job is to pass the knowledge of events to new generations while preserving the roots and the cultural traditions of their ancestors.

The “Hora do Griot” presentation series was created by Ibrahima Gaye to honor this oral tradition of African culture. Gaye is an African person who leaves in Brazil since 1998. This presentation can be performed in front of a crowd of up to 80 students, and is also open to teachers. In his narrative, Ibrahima Gaye paints a clear and amusing portrait of the Africa in which he grew up, demystifying stereotypes in a very charming way to the delight of children and adults alike.

The presentation of “Hora do Griot” has three main aspects. The first is its expression of respect for African people, especially in relation to its elders. This In the words of the Malian writer Amadou Hampaté Ba : “In Africa, a dead elder is a burned library!”. This idea stimulates new discussion in relation to the basic dicipline of our children, as well as adults. The second aspect is to display the great diversity of languages on the African continent. Ibrahima says that in Senegal, for example, children learn three international languages in public school outside of Senegal’s native languages and Arabic mainly spoken by the muslim population. In his case, he learned French, Englsh, and Spanish. The third aspect of the “Hora de Griot’ presentation is a photo exposition on the culture and development of Africans, to show the audience modern cities like Dakar and its newly constructed streets in order to dispell the stereotypes of The Dark Continent only having a primative way of life.