A brief historical overview of Black anarchist activism in the early Brazilian labor movement (1906-1930) --- Carlos Júnior --- Although few pages have been dedicated to Black libertarian activists in Brazil, they were at the forefront of important events and achievements of the Brazilian labor movement. ---- The chronology would undoubtedly begin with the professor, philosopher, and journalist Antônio Pedro de Figueiredo (1814-1859). Figueiredo founded the magazine O Progresso (1846-1848), which featured contributions from other writers who, like Figueiredo, were influenced by French "utopian" socialism.
In Recife, during the 1840s, there was a small colony of French immigrants, among them the socialist engineer Louis Vauthier, who brought several books by socialist authors such as Saint-Simon, Owen, and Fourier, in addition to the self-proclaimed anarchist Proudhon. In 1849, Figueiredo condemned slavery and large landholdings in Pernambuco, basing his arguments on Proudhon's maxim: "to destroy the despotism embodied in large landholdings." Due to his socialist ideas, Figueiredo suffered constant racist insults from his opponents.
The first Black anarchists began to appear frequently in newspapers and periodicals during the 1910s and 1920s. At that time, Kropotkin's libertarian communism, Pouget's revolutionary syndicalism, Ferrer's pedagogy, and, to some extent, Tolstoy's ideas were the main influences on libertarians, associations, and strike movements. Photographs of the First Brazilian Workers' Congress (1906), held in Rio de Janeiro, show that a large part of the union representatives present were Black.
[Image caption: Delegates at the First Brazilian Workers' Congress (Wikipedia)]
Between 1917 and 1920, large general strikes with strong anarchist influence erupted throughout Brazil. The country's regional capitals and industrial centers-Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Porto Alegre, Belém, Salvador, and Recife-became epicenters of movements that brought thousands of workers to the streets demanding everything from an eight-hour workday and wage increases to the end of private property and the abolition of the state.
Members of the Masons, Carpenters and Other Trades Union, 1919
We recall that numerous black anarchists participated in these strikes and were arrested, tortured or killed: João da Costa Pimenta, Armando Gomes, Hermogéneo Silva, Custódio Paes, Eustáquio Marinho, Justiniano Silva, Pedro Lessa, Olímpio Santana, João Lopes, Minervino Oliveira, Sinval Borges, Cândido Costa, José Argolo, José Leandro, Sebastião Silva, Tomaz Derliz Borges, Laudelina Silva, Domingos Passos, José da Silva Gama, Abílio José, José Domiense, Luiz França, Djalma and Cristiano Fettermann.
Cândido Costa was one of the most active anarchists in Rio de Janeiro during the 1910s. His anti-clerical and libertarian lectures attracted hundreds of workers. He also participated in the Second Workers' Congress (1912). During a speech to the workers, Costa was brutally beaten by the police and by people participating in a religious procession that was passing near the protest site.
Cândido Costa
The black marble worker Minervino Oliveira, originally from Bahia but active in Rio de Janeiro, was one of the main representatives of the marble workers. He participated in several labor protests and libertarian associations. Laudelina Silva, a seamstress, became a symbol in the fight against racism, labor exploitation, and sexual violence. She was arrested while protesting in front of her boss's house against her own dismissal and that of her colleagues. Before calling the police, the boss declared that he didn't want "that lazy black woman" in front of his house. Laudelina and the other workers were not intimidated and continued the protest until they were taken to the police station.
In the 1910s, in Porto Alegre, the southernmost capital of Brazil, the Fettermann brothers were anti-clerical anarchists, educators, trade unionists, and active illegalists for several years. Cristiano Fettermann published articles in the newspaper *O Exemplo*. The newspaper's editors founded a night school for workers with the same name. The newspaper also published texts by the black socialist Tácito Pires. Djalma Fettermann worked as a journalist and taught French and Portuguese at the Escola Moderna in Porto Alegre. He actively participated in the 1917 strike in Porto Alegre and, according to some historians, manufactured bombs that were thrown at the police.
Almerinda Gama (1899-1999)
In Belém do Pará, in northern Brazil, the Black siblings Almerinda Farias Gama and José Gama stood out as important figures in anarcho-syndicalism. José Gama was an influential union representative for typographers. He also published articles in Belém's workers' newspapers, such as *O Semeador*. Gama opposed racial prejudice and the expulsion of foreigners from Brazil. Alongside Plácido de Albuquerque, he represented workers' associations at the Third Workers' Congress (1920) in Rio de Janeiro. Almerinda Gama began her political career as a libertarian, giving lectures to typographers in her own home.
In the city of Campinas, in the interior of São Paulo, Armando Gomes was an active railway worker, both as an anarchist and a member of Black associations, such as the Humanitarian League of Men of Color, which fought against prejudice and defended the rights of Black people. In Maceió, Olympio Santana emerged as an anarchist leader. He belonged to anarchist collectives in the city and published texts in workers' newspapers. Luiz França was another black anarchist militant born in Maceió, but active in Rio de Janeiro. In Recife, the libertarian dockworker Pedro Lessa was killed by the police during a port strike. In Salvador, the Union of Masons, Carpenters and Other Trades (SPCDC) was founded in 1919 by black workers committed to revolutionary syndicalism. The union introduced several unprecedented tactics in the region, such as sabotage, boycotts, and general strikes.
During the 1920s, anarchism began to lose ground in workers' associations, while Marxist communism advanced through an aggressive campaign in the unions. Many anarchists became communists, especially after the founding of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) (1922). Beyond the competition from the PCB (Brazilian Communist Party), anarchism suffered repression at the hands of state authorities. During the authoritarian government of President Arthur Bernardes (1922-1926), many opponents were sent to the notorious penal colony of Clevelândia, in Oiapoque, in the far north of Brazil. Of the 1,500 people sent there, half died in less than two years. Many anarchists were deported to this "green hell," as it became known. The Uruguayan black illegalist Thomas Derliz Borche and Domingos Passos, a black libertarian communist active in Rio de Janeiro, managed to escape.
Domingos Passos
Passos, grandson of indigenous and black ancestors, was undoubtedly the most persecuted Brazilian anarchist and one of the most active figures in the labor movement during the 1920s. While many anarchists deserted to the ranks of the PCB (Brazilian Communist Party), the bricklayer and carpenter Domingos Passos fervently defended libertarian communism in rallies, strikes, and workers' associations. He also published articles on libertarian communism in workers' newspapers such as Spartacus, Voz do Trabalhador, and A Plebe. He participated in theater groups in both São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. In 1925, Passos was arrested and sent to Cleveland, from where he escaped, crossing the Amazon rainforest to reach French Guiana, then Pará, and finally Rio de Janeiro in 1927.
The trial of the black anarchist cook José Leandro, arrested in 1921 after an altercation that resulted in the death of three people-including a policeman-in Rio de Janeiro, garnered the attention of workers' newspapers throughout Brazil and neighboring countries. The trial took place in 1924 and ended with José Leandro's unanimous acquittal.
Black anarchists also wrote and organized themselves through workers' periodicals and newspapers. The anti-clerical newspaper *A Lanterna* counted among its editors the mixed-race anarchist poet Raimundo Reis, also known as Beato da Silva. In Porto Alegre, black socialists, trade unionists, and libertarians wrote, edited, and published the black newspaper *O Exemplo*. Cristiano Fettermann, for example, published articles on education. The newspaper *O Semeador* was published by Bruno de Menezes e Silva Gama, black anarchists from Belém do Pará. They also belonged to anarchist propaganda groups and taught in the city's modern schools. In Salvador, the newspaper *Germinal* was founded in 1919 by the mixed-race socialist lawyer Agripino Nazareth, while *Voz do Trabalhador* was founded by the black anarcho-syndicalist Eutachio Marinho.
Gilka Machado (1893-1980)
In literature, many Brazilian writers-libertarian or not-were influenced by anarchist authors such as Émile Zola, Guerra Junqueiro, and Leo Tolstoy. Raimundo Reis and Adalberto Viana were black anarchist poets widely published in libertarian periodicals between 1910 and 1920. Pereira da Silva was a poet influenced by Tolstoy. Gilka Machado was a famous writer in her time, especially among workers and libertarians. Her poetry was erotic in nature. Bruno de Menezes, in addition to being a journalist, was also a poet, dedicated to social issues and Afro-Brazilian culture.
Lima Barreto (1881-1922)
Lima Barreto was a Black libertarian journalist and writer born in Rio de Janeiro, then the capital of Brazil. His chronicles remain one of the most important sources for the study of the First Brazilian Republic. In them, he denounced the racism, militarism, and hypocrisy of the Brazilian elite. Barreto was even institutionalized in psychiatric facilities, where he wrote *The Cemetery of the Living*, an autobiographical work.
Translated from here: https://freedomnews.org.uk/2026/07/23/the-origins-of-black-anarchism-in-brazil/
https://colectivolibertarioevora.wordpress.com/2026/07/23/as-origens-do-anarquismo-negro-no-brasil/#more-27739
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Source: A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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