Black Activism: intertwining feminists epistemologies in the trajectories of black and religious women

Abstract

In this article, we propose to discuss the trajectories and crossroads of black women adept of Catholicism and Candomblé, based on analysis subsidized by epistemologies on the black activism field, our references were Black and decolonial feminism as well as Catholic feminism theology, we try to catch narratives about body, sexuality, ethnicity, race, and religiosity from where intersections emerge. To make these connections, we rely on the trajectories of two black women from the south of Bahia, residing in the municipality of Canavieiras, who self-declared as black women, aged 53 and 62 years old, one is Catholic the other one is Candomblecist, respectively. The “trajectories in narratives” of the two research collaborators have unveiled a crossroads of viewpoints about body and sexuality, in which religiosity guided the mobilization of different concepts and representations about gender. With this regard, "body" is narrated in different ways, especially as a tool for accessing and maintaining religious practices, which through the legitimation of sacred elements allows the fulfillment and diffusion of beliefs and values that the field of morals, affecting perceptions about lust and sexual practices of black women.