From “Mam’-of-Coffee” to parliamentar: the sub-representation of black women and political reform

Abstract

This paper discusses the participation of black women in politics from the intersection between racism and sexism, aiming to observe what the position of black women in politics in Brazil, from the analysis of racist and sexist insults directed at Senator Regina Sousa, by comedian Danilo Gentili and the journalist Joice Hasselman. We try to show throughout the text as the link between the racist, sexist and capitalist systems work on the black, resulting in their underrepresentation in power spaces. Therefore, we present the assumptions of feminist thought and black feminism, especially intersectional method. Then we discussed the history of women in Brazilian politics, especially the black, watching as the link between the oppression on them generates an absence in these spaces. We use the intersectional method to analyze the speeches delivered by said comedian and journalist, episode known for calling Regina Sousa “mam’-of-coffee”, trying to understand what his lines have revealingly about the position occupied by black women in our society and politics. We conclude that the lines reveal the delegitimization of black parliamentarians because of their racial belonging, social and ideological. Also pointed to the movements for Political Reform and in defense of affirmative action in the electoral logic reach this sector, highlighting the need for the formulation of a platform that addresses more directly the demand for black and female representation in the various spheres of power