Vó Geralda nos labirintos da memória: mulheres negras e práticas de cura e cuidado

Abstract

This autobiographical dissertation ventures through the labyrinths of memory, with a particular look at healing and care practiced by black women, exemplified in the figure of Grandma Geralda, a black woman born in Ouriçaguinhas, BA, and, later living in Alagoinhas, BA, until her death. The journey here proposed observes how hardship and resilience meet in the healing practices and care processes carried out by black women in the diaspora, and showing how these practices have been preserved and transformed over time. By exploring some of these traditions, this work aims not only to highlight the struggle against oblivion and marginalization of women in their healing and care activities, but also to illuminate the power of these practices as elements of resistance and cultural affirmation. This autobiographical narrative aims to cautiously uncover the vital role of these women in maintaining a legacy that is often both a refuge and a source of power and identity. I follow these paths intertwined with memories and follow the crossroads where power structures, memory and intangible cultural heritage meet. This dissertation aims at unveiling the complexity and richness of healing and care practices by Black women, pointing out this knowledge, rooted in experience and resistance, as influential and inspiring. Heritage, in the context of this dissertation, refers to the set of practices, knowledge and cultural traditions that are transmitted from generation to generation. Materiality, although not the primary focus, appears in herbs, home remedies and other instruments used in healing practices, which carry with them the history and identity of a people.