Watch the video with English subtitles on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flcnfwhbooI
The Transatlantic Bodies Project, directed by Tiago Fernandes Maranhão at Loyola University New Orleans, had its starting phase launched in 2021 with an initial Mellon Partners in Humanities Education Faculty Collaboration fund of $11,400 from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to Maranhão (at the time working as a postdoctoral fellow at the Tougaloo College) and his co- director Dr. Maria Paula Andrade.
This first phase involves examining the 19th- and early 20th-century city of Recife (capital of Brazil’s state of Pernambuco), a pivotal colonial port in the Americas, and the challenges posed by racial issues, scientific knowledge, and inequality within transnational influences in a multi-ethnic society. The coastal city of Recife developed as a multicultural place with Catholic immigrants from Southern Europe, Dutch and Jewish immigrants, as well as enslaved Africans and their descendants. Important British and Portuguese communities (Italian, Spanish, and German in a smaller scale) also settled years before the first decades of the twentieth century.
Pernambuco thus serves as a lens through which we can gain insights into the broader world. By integrating its capital, Recife, we aim to establish connections between the Americas and the global sphere, enabling exploration of both local urban dynamics and transnational phenomena. This exploration delves into the relationship between scientific knowledge and public health, slavery and its consequences, immigration and geographical spaces, uncovering valuable perspectives. It is important to recognize that Recife’s historical significance extends beyond its role as a city. It offers us a typical representation of broader dynamics.
By identifying residues from the past in our present, we can also understand the lasting impacts of historical processes. Furthermore, we emphasize the importance of recognizing continuities that exist alongside transformative phenomena. This kind of investigation allows for a more comprehensive understanding of complex dynamics and their implications at both the local and global levels.
This first phase of TBP thus aims to provide insights into the complex interplay between various factors and its historical legacies by examining local dimensions within the global interconnectedness of societies. The historical space of Pernambuco serves then as a representative example, illustrating broader patterns rather than being an exceptional case.