Search Results (41)

Background/Objectives: The Black Caribbean population of Honduras, also referred to locally as Negro Inglés, constitutes one of the country’s nine recognized indigenous and Afro-descendant peoples. Predominantly settled in the Bay Islands and sections of the Caribbean coast, this community traces its ancestry predominantly to West Africa and has remained culturally and linguistically distinct for more than three centuries. Despite its demographic and historical relevance, no population-specific short tandem repeat (STR) database has been established for this group. Methods: Allele frequencies for 23 autosomal STR loci were characterized in 100 unrelated Black Caribbean individuals from the department of Islas de la Bahía. DNA was extracted from blood on FTA cards and amplified with the PowerPlex Fusion 6C System (Promega Corporation). Statistical parameters were computed using Genepop v4.2, Arlequin v3.5 and GDA v1.0. Results: A total of 241 distinct alleles were detected across all 23 loci (mean 10.48 ± 3.85 alleles/locus). Expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.6541 (D13S317) to 0.9350 (SE33), with a mean of 0.8150 ± 0.0664—values consistent with a population of predominantly West African origin. No locus exhibited a significant departure from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction (α = 0.0022). The combined power of discrimination exceeded 99.9999% and the combined chance of exclusion surpassed 99.9999%. Conclusions: This first genetic characterization of the Honduran Black Caribbean population delivers an essential, population-specific reference dataset for forensic casework, paternity testing, and population genetics research. The data also deepen the understanding of Afro-descendant genetic diversity in Central America and constitute a critical step towards equitable forensic genetic services for all Honduran ethnic communities. Full article

Intergenerational memories, migration histories, and the lasting influence of colonial linguistic systems profoundly shape heritage language maintenance in Afro-descendant communities of Central America. This study examines how genealogy functions as a pedagogical tool for sustaining English-based Creole languages among Afro-descendant populations in Costa Rica, Panama, and Belize, three nations linked by Afro-Caribbean migration yet shaped by distinct colonial and educational systems. Drawing on scholarship documenting oral histories, family narratives, and community-based linguistic practices, the study advances a genealogy-as-pedagogy framework to explain how families transmit language, identity, and belonging across generations through ancestral memory, positioning family-based knowledge transmission as curriculum. In Costa Rica and Panama, where Spanish colonial and post-independence language ideologies marginalize English-based Creole varieties, genealogical practices operate as primary mechanisms of linguistic continuity in the absence of sustained institutional support. In Belize, by contrast, British colonial legacies and the national recognition of Belizean Kriol create a distinct sociolinguistic environment in which state institutions, the media, and educational policy reinforce genealogical memory. Through comparative analysis, the study argues for integrating genealogical knowledge into multilingual education, community revitalization initiatives, and heritage language policy to strengthen Afro-descendant linguistic continuity in Costa Rica, Panama, and Belize. Full article

Background: Quilombola communities, Afro-descendant Brazilian rural settlements with collectivistic culture, have suffered historical invasions and non-legalization of their territories, exposure to environmental degradation/hazards, and educational and health care deprivation by the government. Global climate changes have increased sea levels and the occurrence of floods. This study presents original empirical findings from ongoing qualitative fieldwork in Quilombola communities in Southern Brazil that were severely affected by the 2024 floods, focusing on post-disaster quality of life, health impacts, and community coping strategies. These dimensions remain underexamined in public health and environmental justice research. Methods: Guided by interdisciplinary frameworks of environmental racism, intersectionality, and critical disaster studies, flooding is analyzed not as a natural hazard, but as a socially produced risk shaped by racialized territorial exclusion, historical marginalization, and chronic governance failures. Data were generated by household testimonies, community observations, and assessments of governmental disaster responses. Results: Fragmented disaster management, unequal access to infrastructure, and limited participatory governance mechanisms intensified vulnerability, constrained adaptive capacity, and exacerbated health inequities among Quilombola populations. Despite these constraints, communities demonstrated strong resilience grounded in traditional knowledge, local solidarity networks, and collective agency. Conclusions: The study underscores the urgent need for equity-centered environmental governance and inclusive disaster risk reduction strategies to address healthy aging inequities. Full article

Background/Objectives: Mental disorders are a growing public health concern in Latin America, particularly among marginalized populations. This study aimed to identify the prevalence and associated risk factors of mental disorders in Afro-descendant communities of the Río Chota Basin, a historically excluded population facing persistent social and economic inequalities. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in several rural communities using random sampling. A total of 557 participants were assessed for sociodemographic factors and mental health status using the following validated instruments: the Global Mental Health Assessment Tool–Primary Care (GMHAT/PC), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), and the WHO STEPS questionnaire. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential tests to determine associations between psychosocial, behavioral, and socioeconomic variables and the presence of mental disorders. Results: The overall prevalence of mental disorders was extremely high (60.7%), exceeding national and regional estimates. The most prevalent conditions were major depressive disorder (15.6–17.9%), anxiety disorders (10.2–12.3%), and psychosis with depressive symptoms (8.3–11.5%), with higher rates among women. Low fruit and vegetable intake and income below the minimum wage were significantly associated with greater prevalence. Severe stress and experiences of abuse or maltreatment showed the strongest associations with mental disorders (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Afro-descendant communities in the Río Chota Basin experience a disproportionately high burden of mental illness influenced by intertwined socioeconomic, psychosocial, and behavioral determinants. Culturally sensitive interventions that promote resilience, community support, and reduction in structural inequalities are urgently needed. Full article

This article addresses a key evidence gap in urban safety policy in Colombia: the absence of publicly accessible microdata that jointly measure victimization, perception of security, and probability of sanctions among socioeconomically vulnerable residents. It aims to provide a clean, linkable dataset that enables analysis of variations in these issues across demographic and territorial groups in Cali (recently classified as the 29th most dangerous city worldwide, with 1028 and 1065 homicides in 2024 and 2025, respectively). It reports face-to-face survey data collected from 22 July to 16 August 2024, at Sistema de Identificación de Potenciales Beneficiarios de Programas Sociales (SISBEN) service points. The final dataset includes 2139 adults (aged 18–95 years) and combines (i) primary responses on perceived safety (e.g., public space safety and surveillance cameras), perceived likelihood of sanction, victimization, and self-protection measures with (ii) selected sociodemographic and household characteristics drawn from SISBEN IV records. Individual-level linkage was implemented using respondent identification at interviews, yielding an integrated anonymized file suitable for replication and secondary analysis. The dataset enables distributive analyses of insecurity (e.g., by sex, age, and ethnicity—including Afro-descendant populations) within a policy-relevant target group and supports evaluation and targeting of local interventions by providing individual-level indicators. Full article

Palm oil (Elaeis guineensis), one of the most widely used vegetable oils globally, originates from West Africa and has played a significant role in food, health care, and historical trade networks. It holds cultural, historical, ecological and symbolic significance in Bahia, Brazil. Unlike industrial monocultures, Bahia’s dendê economy is rooted in biodiverse landscapes, maintained through artisanal methods and generational knowledge. Yet, this traditional system faces mounting pressures from deforestation, declining artisanal production, and the industrialization of palm oil supply chains. Parallel to these ecological and economic threats is the abandonment of Bahia’s historical processing infrastructure: many traditional mills and industrial heritage sites have been lost, eroding both tangible and intangible cultural landscapes. These shifts have profound implications for the Baianas do Acarajé, the iconic street vendors who embody the matriarchal cultural lineage and rely on high-quality, traditionally produced dendê for their Afro-Brazilian cuisine. The increasing cost and reduced availability of artisanal oil compromise not only their livelihoods but also the authenticity of comidas de azeite, diminishing a sensory and symbolic culinary tradition. This study adopts a rigorous interdisciplinary methodology, synthesizing ethnography, heritage science, and engineering principles to explore how these artisanal practices can help us solve modern industrial sustainability problems. This article argues that Bahia’s palm oil heritage embodies a multifaceted heritage, spanning religious, economic, ecological, and cultural dimensions, that remains under-recognized and vulnerable. Drawing from UNESCO’s framework of intangible cultural heritage, the study not only details how these practices are transmitted across generations through the matriarchal culinary lineage, but ultimately advances three core contributions, analyzing artisanal performance, proposing a transferable sustainability framework, and outlining actionable pathways, to demonstrate that local communities are co-designers of solutions whose heritage offers a proven blueprint to address contemporary industrial sustainability challenges, calling for informed recognition and support to safeguard this essential component of Brazil’s Afro-descendant cultural identity. Full article

Background: Social inequalities and vulnerability associated with ethnic and social minority status are risk factors for health inequities. Objective: To assess associations between psychosocial health, social discrimination, perceived social support, and resilience among people living in Portugal based on ethnic origin. Method: This is an observational and cross-sectional study carried out with 756 individuals aged between 18 and 84 (Mean = 39.3; Standard deviation = 13.79). The sample was probabilistic, and participants were recruited through convenience sampling, on online platforms. Participants responded to the Brief Symptom Inventory, Everyday Discrimination Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale, and a sociodemographic questionnaire. Participants were divided into two groups, the first consisting of white Portuguese of European origin (majority group, n = 609, 80.56%) and the second consisting of black individuals, Afro-descendants, Roma, and Portuguese-Roma (minority group, n = 147, 19.44%). Results: Compared to the majority group, the minority group experienced greater structural disadvantages, including lower educational attainment, higher unemployment, and lower income, as well as significantly higher scores for psychological distress, social discrimination, perceived social support, and resilience. Regression analyses revealed that belonging to an ethnic minority predicts psychological distress, even when controlling for other variables. Social discrimination was found to be an important risk factor for psychological distress, while perceived social support and resilience were found to be protective factors. Conclusions: Our results provide preliminary evidence for developing public social policies to care for ethnic minority groups living in Portugal. Further, findings highlight the high frequency of discrimination reported by this group and its associated mental health problems, which underscore the importance of investing in anti-discrimination campaigns, establishing formal and informal social support mechanisms, and developing social strategies to empower and increase the resilience of these minority groups in Portugal. Full article

Rural areas in Brazil, like many parts of the Global South, face profound socioeconomic and demographic transformations, including depopulation, aging populations, and infrastructural deficits. These challenges are particularly acute for traditional communities such as quilombolas—descendants of Afro-Brazilian maroons—whose territorial rights and cultural survival remain vulnerable. This study examines socioeconomic and demographic changes in two traditional quilombola communities—Moreiras and Buraco do Paiol—in the municipality of Rio Espera, Minas Gerais, and their interaction with rural development policies. Using a mixed-methods approach combining census data (IBGE 2022), geoprocessing (QGIS, MapBiomas), and fieldwork—including semi-structured interviews with 16 households and community leaders—we analyze population trends, land use dynamics, access to services, and local strategies of resistance. Results reveal a dual dynamic: structural pressures such as youth outmigration, aging, and inadequate infrastructure coexist with endogenous resilience strategies, including agroecological farming, productive diversification, and cultural revitalization through festivals and community associations. Programs such as the Food Acquisition Program (PAA) and National School Feeding Program (PNAE) have provided critical support, but their impact is amplified by community ownership and participation. We conclude that sustainable rural development in quilombola territories depends on integrating context-sensitive public policies with endogenous social, productive, and cultural dynamics. This calls for a territorialized, participatory approach that recognizes quilombola communities not merely as beneficiaries, but as agents of sustainable development. Full article

The conjuncture of our present time, as Stuart Hall would argue, calls for a critical scrutiny of socio-political forces that aim to destabilize epistemologies and praxis of inclusion, diversity and equity. Such forces use education as a strategic site to perpetuate far-right ideologies and the idea of superiority of white, Western, middle-class nation-states. This article explores more recent manifestations of fortress Europe through the co-optation of inclusive education for migrant and refugee students in Italy and Tunisia. As critical scholars from opposite sides of the Mediterranean, we draw on anti-Blackness to engage in an analysis of the use of education policies to reproduce white supremacy in Italian society, while investing in humanitarian education in Tunisia to contain the movement of African migrants towards Europe. Lastly, the article intends to center the voices of Afro-descendant activists, who have increasingly gained a platform to speak back against such policies, and advocate for a more equitable society, with a more inclusive citizenship law. Full article

Drawing upon the works of Kazadi wa Mukuma, Gerhard Kubik, Carlos de Lima, Vivian Gotheim, Wilson Nogueira, Temitope Fagunwa, and Alaba Simpson, this study traced the evolution of Bumba-Meu-Boi from its regional origins in Maranhao, Brazil, to its adaptation in Lagos, Nigeria, as an Afro-Brazilian returnee festival within the context of Lagos carnival. Beyond serving as a crucible for the historical return of repatriated Africans from Brazil following abolition of slavery in Brazil, the study also documents how the Afro-Brazilian community has been fully integrated into the Nigerian society. Through the formation of a thriving Brazilian Descendants Association, the Brazilian community has been able to sustain their Afro-Brazilian heritage through social events and community impact by preserving Brazilian architecture, culinary knowledge, festivals, teaching of Portuguese language, and the celebration of their Afro-Brazilian genealogical past. Full article

The impact of mercury (Hg) on biological systems is well documented; however, the long-term effects of low-level exposure in children remain unclear, particularly with respect to oxidative stress and cognitive outcomes. This study evaluated Hg exposure and its associations with the gene expression and intelligence quotient (IQ) in two Afro-descendant child populations in Colombia. Hair total mercury (T-Hg) was quantified in 163 children under 7 years old, along with their sociodemographic data. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found in fish consumption and mean hair T-Hg concentrations between children from Mahates (2.66 ± 0.30 meals/week; 0.32 ± 0.03 µg/g) and Zanjón (1.24 ± 0.09 meals/week; 0.24 ± 0.01 µg/g). The gene expression analysis revealed higher SOD1 expression in Mahates. The mean IQ scores were higher in Zanjón (74.7) than those in Mahates (71.7). Overall, Spearman’s correlation analysis showed no significant associations (p > 0.05) between T-Hg and the measured variables. The principal component analysis (PCA) revealed a clear separation between populations: Mahates, associated with a higher mercury burden and the upregulation of stress-response genes, and Zanjón, characterized by a better cognitive performance and lower mercury exposure. These findings suggest that despite the low overall exposure and non-significant bivariate correlations, the communities displayed distinct profiles, highlighting the value of integrated molecular–cognitive biomonitoring and motivate longitudinal studies addressing co-exposures and socioeconomic confounding. Full article

This article analyzes the dynamics of racial mixing in two regions with diverse colonial administrations in the second half of the eighteenth century: St. Augustine in the province of East Florida (under British and Spanish rule) and New Orleans in the province of Louisiana (under French and Spanish rule). Baptismal records for Black and Brown individuals were used, compiling nominal data from a sample of Afro-descendants born in the latter half of the eighteenth century. Whenever available, information was collected regarding racial classification—for both the baptized individuals and their parents—as well as legal status (enslaved or free) and birth legitimacy. The analysis is conducted from a critical intersectionality framework, highlighting how race, legal status, and gender served as amplifiers of inequality. Among the main results, we must highlight gender and racial classification that, thus, emerge as key differentiators for explaining the legal status and legitimacy of baptized individuals, and they also indicate systemic asymmetries in parental relationships. Full article

This study analyzed the intersection between Afrodescendant ethnoeducation and the school-to-work transition in three marginalized communities of the Colombian Caribbean: La Boquilla, Tierra Bomba, and Libertad-Sucre. Using a qualitative methodology, the research reconstructed, on the one hand, the institutional framework of Afro-Colombian ethnoeducation since the 1991 Constitution, highlighting public policies implemented and their impacts. On the other hand, it examined the educational dynamics in these localities and their link (or lack thereof) to local labor markets, identifying innovations, limitations, and structural barriers affecting young people’s transition from school to work. The findings show that the Colombian ethnoeducational model has introduced curricular and participatory innovations aimed at enhancing cultural relevance and preparing students for productive life. However, its implementation faces persistent barriers including inadequate infrastructure, the legacies of internal armed conflict, structural racism, limited employment opportunities, and chronic public disinvestment. Despite valuable local initiatives—such as technical training in collaboration with the SENA (National Learning Service, Colombia’s public technical education system) in sectors like fishing and tourism—Afrodescendant youth continue to experience limited labor market integration. Finally, the article offers policy and practical recommendations from a decolonial ethnoeducational perspective, inspired by the pedagogy for liberation, to strengthen the school-to-work transition in contexts of vulnerability. Full article

Several studies emphasize that the limited representation of Afro-Latinx communities in Spanish language curricula affects students’ understanding of the diversity in Spanish-speaking societies. However, research has yet to evaluate the impact of a curricular intervention incorporating an Afro-Latinx module into an L2 Spanish language course. The present study addresses two research questions: (1) what the changes in knowledge after implementing an Afro-Latinx module in an L2 Spanish language course are, and (2) how the module impacts students’ understanding of language variation and diversity in Afro-descendant communities. Guided by Critical Race Theory, Critical Language Awareness, and Raciolinguistics, this mixed methods study analyzed pre- and post-tests alongside journal reflections completed by 50 college students. The findings demonstrated significant improvements in students’ knowledge, indicating a strong association between the intervention and the observed increase in knowledge regarding the representation of Afro-Latinx communities. It also deepened students’ understanding of language variation within Afro-descendant communities and illustrated the role of language in deconstructing social hierarchies and enabling collective memory, resistance, and empowerment. Full article

Objectives: To analyze Colombia’s current human population, we employed a population genetics approach enriched by genealogical, demographic, cultural, and historical data to learn about its evolutionary history and to elucidate ethnic belonging and relationship patterns between its various population groups. Materials and Methods: This study relied on ten autosomal microsatellite markers (STRs) from 1364 individuals surveyed throughout the country. Aside from employing descriptive population genetics, substructure, and distance analysis, this investigation evaluated genealogical, demographic, cultural, and historical data gathered from fieldwork surveys. Results: We present a genetic diversity and ethnic belonging map of Colombia that suggests a nine-population classification (under Afro-descendant, Native American, and Admixed ethnicity labels) that reveals traces of evolutionary processes discussed in the light of the recent literature based on modern molecular markers. Colombia’s genetic trace from Africa varies among territories, as shown here by two differentiated Afro ancestral components, Chocó and San Andrés, in addition to the Afro admixture category. Some Native American peoples like the Wayúu, Zenú, Ticuna, Huitoto, and Cocama have a genetic configuration that remains relatively preserved. Nevertheless, other self-determined indigenous peoples who remain in their ancestral territories exhibit genetic introgression that is also reflected by their acculturation levels such as the Pijaos, Kankuamos, and Mokaná. The population classified as European admixture also shows an ancestral component that seems to be more fixed throughout neighboring territories but whose fluctuation depends on its specific demographic histories. Conclusions: This study combines STRs, a targeted sampling strategy, and advanced analytical tools to explore Colombia’s genetic diversity and evolutionary history. Locally, these findings enhance the understanding of genetics in a post-conflict society, crucial for human identification. Globally, they contribute to human population genetics, helping address evolutionary questions using data from diverse human ancestries and geographies. Full article