Reflections on migration and the African diaspora in the biography of Mahommah Gardo Baquaqua

Abstract

Enlightened by Friedman (2007), this work proposes a reflection on the notions of migration, diasporas, and borders in the biography of Mahommah Gardo Baquaqua. The value of Mahommah’s biography to the construction and anchoring of a collective memory of the horrors experienced by the enslaved is discussed based on Halbwachs (1990). Furthermore, this work takes Woodwards’ (2000) contributions into account to discuss the identity formation of an individual under compulsory migration, as well as the effects of colonialism (Vertovec, 2004) in both the subject’s life and understanding of the world.  In a few words, the results show that Mahommah’s testimony allows us to rethink the historical past concerning enslavement and resignify it in the present, given the rareness and importance of a report that, despite the intervention of the white moderator, offers an inside perspective of the facts regarding the enslavement in Brazil.