The Controlling Images and the obstacles to political citizenship for black women

Abstract

Between achievements and setbacks, women's political rights were secured by the 1988 Constitution, following a history of restrictions on female citizenship. In this context, suffragists - predominantly white - challenged male dominance and the biological determinism that confined women to the private sphere. However, the movement, at its core, did not account for the experiences of Black women, whose lives, due to the Brazilian slavery context, were not limited to the private sphere. This led to the invisibility of Black women who played significant roles in the history of political rights achievements in Brazil. From this perspective, this work reflects on the construction of political citizenship for Black women, highlighting the challenges of exercising the right to vote and be elected. The text is divided into three sections: first, it analyzes the relationship between citizenship and slavery in Brazil, introducing the concept of "controlling images"; next, it revisits the participation of Black women in the suffragist movement, with a focus on the trajectories of Antonieta de Barros and Almerinda Farias Gama; and finally, it explores the strategies employed by Black women in the current context to gain visibility in political spaces and assert control over their own images.