Daniela Alarcon winner of Whitten Publication Subvention 2018

Daniela Fernandes Alarcon winner of the 2018 Whitten Publication Subvention Award

Daniela Fernandes Alarcon, of the Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, was the winner of the 2018 Norm and Sibby Whitten Publication Subvention Award, of US$2500, for the publication of her book “O retorno da terra: as retomadas na aldeia Tupinambá da Serra do Padeiro, sul da Bahia.”

O retorno da terra: as retomadas na aldeia Tupinambá da Serra do Padeiro, sul da Bahia 

Daniela Alarcon’s book addresses a little-studied topic of indigenous land reclamations in SouthAmerica. It does so in the ethnographic context of the Brazilian Tupinambá, who despite sometimes violent resistance have actively sought to repossess the areas traditionally occupied by them. Alarcon’s book is important as it shows how indigenous people’s spiritual ties to the land in Bahia have been reproduced through centuries, despite the harsh assimilation politics and oppression by the state as well as extractive industries and other economic actors. Through the Tupinambá’s own narratives and conceptualizations of land and community, the book tells the story of native resistance to violence, racism, and the threat of delegitimization. Given the current political situation in Brazil, and the situation of hundreds of indigenous territorial claims-making processes that are stalled in Brazil and elsewhere, the book is highly relevant for scholars, students, indigenous leaders, activists, government officials, and the general Brazilian readership. The book has been accepted for publication by Editora Elefante.