Capoeira community and the pro-Palestine movement
by Pauliana Martins de Sousa and Zoe Marriage
Paulinha leads the independent and inclusive capoeira group Capoeira Bemvindo Angola in London. Originally from Northeastern Brazil, Paulinha has been living in the UK for 20 years. A central theme to her activism is the connection between her lived experience and history, and her political stance. Growing up in a marginalized area of Fortaleza, Brazil, and facing discrimination, she developed an anti-colonial and anti-supremacist perspective. Working as an immigrant in the UK and building her professional life through capoeira has also contributed to her understanding of resistance. This viewpoint informs her pro-Palestine activism within the capoeira community.
Paulinha writes…
I first learnt about the violence in Palestine in a roda (capoeira circle) organised as a fundraiser, 10-12 years back. I had heard about the conflict in the Middle East but had not understood much. I started to research the conflict and the history of the Middle East, and with the heightened violence in Palestine since late 2023, I have worked through capoeira and through the capoeira community, to mobilise around building solidarity and condemnation of the violence.
Capoeira has a strong presence in Israel. There is a huge group, there are some very good players, and there is funding to invite teachers from Brazil. Capoeira players have always been political and they have stood in opposition to racism and far-right leaders such as Bolsonaro. When it comes to the violence committed by Israel in Palestine though, the Israeli capoeira players and many teachers in Brazil have not maintained a critical perspective.
Many people in Brazil that I spoke to said: “it’s nothing to do with us, it’s a long way away. We’ve got our own problems here.” But it’s hard to hear these things and in the future this will affect them. The capoeira players in Israel are saying that they play Israeli capoeira, not capoeira from Brazil – it’s a form of appropriation. They are using an art that comes from people who were oppressed in order to oppress others – in Gaza and the West Bank.
Capoeira is a resistance movement against oppression, colonialism, and white elites. The principles of capoeira, which include ancestry and anti-racism, should not be confined to discussions about Brazil but applied globally.
The multicultural environment of London and the freedom of expression within the capoeira community provide a context to voice political beliefs. There are three sites of resistance:
- Local and specific: We have created a space within our own capoeira roda for discussion and solidarity using Palestinian flags and symbols for humanity, and against all that is happening there in full view of the world and everyone is accepting. We invite people to educate others on the history of the conflict, and open the space for people to discuss the politics and violence.
- Activism in public spaces: Together with other capoeira colleagues, I’ve mobilised to bring the community together at pro-Palestine marches in Central London where there have been hundreds of thousands of people. Taking instruments, singing and adapting songs that confront injustices, capoeira provides a focal point and a mouthpiece. Other marchers join in with rhythms, ask about our musical instrument, the berimbau, and the language. The berimbau is our symbol. We say, “we are capoeira, we are bringing capoeira to this pro-Palestine movement”. We speak a bit about why we were there. When this started happening, lots of people started turning up – principally capoeira students more than leaders, from both Regional and Angola styles. Capoeira has made links not only within the community of players, but with others on the marches.
- Online activism: Through social media posts and groups, and through engagement with others, I have contested that the principles of capoeira are incompatible with violence against civilians, and exposed the contradictions of those who continued to work with Israeli groups that are supportive of the state’s violence. It’s not that capoeira shouldn’t exist in Israel, but if you’re going to practise capoeira you have to know where it comes from, what its principles are. This online activism has a broader base – we’ve had people from Europe, the USA and Brazil getting in touch to support us. And there’s a boycott in place against capoeiristas who go to Israel and collaborate with groups there. I’ve also broken some relationships as people who were artistic references for me have chosen to teach in Israel.
When people say they don’t want to mix capoeira with politics, it makes no sense. The principles of capoeira, stemming from its origins in anti-colonial struggle provide the energy and parameters for these debates. I’m committed to this cause; I come from poverty, I’ve been through a lot of discrimination, together with my family. We’ve had the privilege of coming here, setting up our lives and capoeira, but we’re not going to forget where we come from just because we’re doing ok now.
Our activism has brought about change through increased solidarity within the community, and through people changing their minds or ceding to pressure from others. There has also been an examination of capoeira; capoeira has always been a broad church but its encounter with the pro-Palestine movement has pushed people to consider its fundamentals in the face of contemporary violence and injustice.
Obviously we’re not going to change the world or end the war, that’s impossible with all the support that is being given to Israel, but I think we can change people’s mentality and conscience to understand the complexity and the problem that exists within capoeira. We do what we can. I don’t live from capoeira for its own sake but to make a positive change for the future.
