Patrimônio cultural negro de Santa Maria: uma proposta de roteiro turístico na região central do Rio Grande do Sul

Abstract

Visiting tourist places arouses different emotions in travellers, in addition to experience, knowledge and cultural exchanges it provides. In Brazil, this practice is even more favourable due to the ethnic diversity that is found here. The legacy left by these generations, represented through cultural heritage, presents a unique, historical profile conveyed through different languages, accents, ethnicities, beliefs, customs, among other cultural and artistic manifestations. The tourist visitation with the purpose of experiencing these practices is called Cultural Tourism. This segment that encompasses other types of tourism, including ethnic tourism, is one of the main themes of this study, analysed in the context of the municipality of Santa Maria, which is located in the central region of Rio Grande do Sul. Designated as a “cultural city”, “university city”, carrying historical roots linked to the railroad and the military, Santa Maria develops different types of tourist itineraries, except for the local Black Culture. For this reason, the present study aims to demystify a one-sided view of the history of Santa Maria and highlight the importance that Black members had in the formation of the city, since it has an expressive and thriving Afro community. The general objective is to understand, based on the identification of cultural heritages that are related to Black Culture, their participation in the development of the city and their historical aspects. The investigation has four categories as its central axis: cultural, social, sporting and religious. Regarding the specific objectives, we aimed to highlight another side of the history of Santa Maria, proposing discussions on topics such as Black Culture, memory, history and Santa Maria tourism, as well as developing a new tourist itinerary. The methodology is classified as exploratory, having a qualitative and historical character, consisting of bibliographic and documentary research and semistructured interviews. Among several authors used in the literature review, classics such as Bahl (2004 and 2005), Guillaume (1980), Hall (2006 and 2003), Halbwachs (1990), Ortiz (1985) and Choay (2006), regional publications by Belém (2000), Flôres (2007), Grigio (2016), Rechia (1999), and traditional bibliographies by Gil (2002), IPHAN (2020) and Unesco (2020). As our final product, two tourist itinerary proposals were developed based on the material and immaterial cultural heritage identified. Finally, the research confirmed the existence of several Black organizations and two football clubs mainly in the 19th and 20th century. Many of them no longer exist and few still resist time and human actions. Nevertheless, the immaterial assets are what remain alive.