Luta pela permanência na terra e memórias de conflito agrário numa comunidade remanescente quilombola: Lagoa Santa-Ituberá-Bahia, Brasil

This study examines a rural black community that defines itself as of Quilombola origin, located in Lagoa Santa, Ituberá, in the state of Bahia, Brazil. The main objective of the study is to understand the process of expropriation of a significant portion of rural land occupied by this black community. We have attempted to demonstrate that both the legal and bureaucratic constraints imposed by the Brazilian government for the legalization of ownership of small plots of land occupied by land grabbers were an important factor in how a small privileged elite accumulated land. Data were collected from interviews and from written sources such as processes of re-appropriation of land and certificates proving the purchase or sale of real estate. By analyzing both written documents and the narratives of those directly or indirectly involved in the conflicts, we have sought to problematize issues of struggle and access to land in Brazil’s post-abolition period. It becomes evident that there is a relationship between the individual and social memories of the rural black community members involved in the conflicts that led to the partial expropriation of their land. This relationship currently projects itself in the community expectations engendered by the prospect of ownership of land that had been expropriated, having its own territory demarcated and granted, as currently required by law in Brazil.