Fraternity – International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF) promoted four events of the Indigenous Intercultural Fair in 2022, all held at the Indigenous Cultural andTraining Center (CCFI), located in Boa Vista, state of Roraima, Brazil. These fairs have become significant spaces for cultural presentations and the development of reflections, with coexistence and exchanges between different Brazilian, Venezuelan and Guyanese ethnic groups. And because they are events that are attractive to the public, they also contribute to cultural appreciation and the dissemination of indigenous products and services. Each event presents a specific theme and program, covering relevant issues of indigenous culture and local reality.
The November Fair, for example, had the title “Mount Roraima – The mountain that unites us,” symbolizing the three surrounding nations: Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana. The Christmas event, held in December, had as its theme the “Buriti’s Party” where, in addition to the exhibition and sale of products made from the fibers and fruits of this palm tree, there were workshops on cooking and processing buriti fiber for the handicraft.
The November Fair, for example, had the title “Mount Roraima – The mountain that unites us,” symbolizing the three surrounding nations: Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana. The Christmas event, held in December, had as its theme the “Buriti’s Party” where, in addition to the exhibition and sale of products made from the fibers and fruits of this palm tree, there were workshops on cooking and processing buriti fiber for the handicraft.
The Warao indigenous people consider the Buriti tree to be a sacred and vitally important palm tree, with which they establish a relationship of bonding and reverence and from which they derive basic resources for food, income generation and housing. The indigenous Warao Argenia Santeno, one of the focus groups at the buriti extraction, cooking, drying and weaving workshop, describes its relevance: “My grandfather used to say that the buriti tree was our father, our ancestor. The buriti tree has a life, a past, a future, a present, because this is historical and cultural. When you see a Buriti tree, you see one of our ancestors, that’s why we value and respect it a lot. From buriti we make food, drink, handicrafts, the roof of the house on stilts. We live from it and dedicate ourselves to it. To make the handicraft, you first have to harvest the straw from the Buriti tree, remove the threads, cook it, wash it and dry it.”
Verônica Alonso, a visitor of the fair, is one of the people who had the opportunity to learn about and appreciate this process: “I saw Buriti’s workshop and I loved it. It was very important to know how it is made, because we already see the finished product and watch the manual production process, very typical, handmade, seeing the work of the women, it is incredible, because it is a very meticulous, detailed work, made with love. In addition to the artisanal process of Buriti fiber, Verônica adds about the advantage of knowing about other aspects of indigenous traditions and their cultural diversity: “These events are very important for us to value indigenous culture, to realize that many times we do not value it in the way it should be valued. I saw that there are many indigenous ethnic groups here and that is very good, because we think there is only one ethnic group in the state, for example. This is super important to understand more about indigenous peoples and their cultures.”
This possibility of expanding knowledge about aspects of indigenous culture, as well as recognizing its value and depth, constitutes one of the objectives of the fairs, the importance of which was also highlighted by the visitor Lais, who works for a humanitarian agency in Boa Vista: “The society of Boa Vista must know. It is a way of integrating the migrants and indigenous people who live here in Roraima. We need to achieve this integration and really promote knowledge about indigenous culture. We cannot forget to welcome refugees and indigenous migrants, but also to think about the local population, the receiving society, which needs to be sensitive, involved and knowledgeable about the indigenous cause, about the reasons for their coming. So I believe that we really need to think about lasting solutions and one of the ways is the integration of this population with the host society. It is local integration and it is also showing empathy for the other and coming here to get to know better the ethnic groups that are in this place.”
The fairs’ schedule contributes to this appreciation and dissemination of knowledge to the visiting public and indigenous peoples, bringing up issues of interest to families and communities, with lectures, workshops and cultural presentations. The visitor Verônica emphasized the richness of the program: “It has programming throughout the day, very cool, interesting events for people not only to learn, but also to have fun. It is an opportunity for the whole family.” The themes of the 2022 fairs included, for example, lectures on tourism in Indigenous Lands in Roraima; creole and native seed bank in indigenous communities; cultural value of indigenous cuisine, environmental education, entrepreneurship and bioeconomy, as well as presentations of projects from other institutions. There were also roundtables about traditional childbirth and indigenous medicine. In addition, there is also a special open mic moment, in which representatives of ethnic groups show their products, tell stories and sing typical songs, expressing their creativity and manifesting their traditional riches. The cultural presentations included demonstrations of dances and music from different peoples, promoted by indigenous groups and associations, such as the Warao women, the Kapói Association and the Diri-Diri group of the Indigenous Association of the City of Boa Vista (ODIC), in addition to the presentation of the Music Without Borders Orchestra and Choir, from the Organization of Indigenous Migrants Roraimö (AMIR).
And in addition to the extensive program, the exhibition itself of different types of products from different indigenous ethnic groups is a source of knowledge about the richness and depth of indigenous culture. Products made with medicinal plants, entrepreneurship items, gastronomy and various types of crafts made with cotton, buriti fiber and clay are displayed and sold. The visitor Laís expresses her impressions and feelings about this richness: “A lot of creativity that we see through the pieces. People have revealed their arts, what potential they have. People have really appreciated what comes from both Brazil and Venezuela. They are extremely beautiful pieces and we see that art for them is a lifestyle, not just another job. They do it with body, soul, heart and with a lot of love, and the fact that they put this in a piece is what we should know better and deepen in this knowledge.”
This recognition of the affective, cultural, artistic and ecological value of indigenous products has made it possible for fairs to also become an attractive space for commercialization and, consequently, for generating income for all merchants, contributing to the achievement and expansion of their financial autonomy, thus revealing the economic importance of these events.
Faced with all these elements, the Indigenous Intercultural Fair continues to expand, with an increasing number of stallholders and visitors, the diversity of products and the scope of its lectures, workshops and cultural presentations, becoming a space where people of different races, ethnicities and nationalities feel welcome and can exchange knowledge and experiences, live together and learn together.
Watch some videos about the culture of indigenous peoples assisted by CCFI in Roraima/Brazil:
