Urban Planner Chronicles Secret Societies of Escaped Slaves in Brazil, Their Decendants' Quest for Rights and Protection of Land, in National Geographic

Professor of Urban Planning, Susanna Hecht [3], has co-authored an article in the April 2012 issue of National Geographic Magazine [4] titled, “Where Slaves Ruled,” on Quilombos, or hidden societies of escaped slaves in Brazil in the era of slavery. Co-written by Charles Mann, author of 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created, the article moves from past centuries to today, discussing the descendants of these communities and their efforts to obtain rights to the land.

“The stakes are high,” write the authors. “New laws are giving Brazil’s maroon communities, called quilombos (the word for “settlement” in the Angolan language of Kimbundu), a key role in determining the future of the great Amazon forest.”

Read the entire National Geographic article, “Where Slaves Ruled [5].”