Lélia Gonzalez: Contributions from Brazil Towards Reframing Social Theory

Our hereby proposed presentation brings to the forefront contributions by a historically marginalized, Black Brazilian intellectual called Lélia Gonzalez, who developed her perspective mainly during the 1970s and 1980s. Having passed away precosiously, without even taking her Ph.D., this aspect, coupled with the obstacles for recognition stemming from racial and gender prejudice, kept her work from being taken into account outside a few selected circles. Recently, specially from 2020 onwards, when an edited volume with her texts and speeches was published by a prestigious editorial house in Brazil, her reflections have gained traction among the social sciences.

Taking into account one of her main conceptual contributions, the debate on Amefricanity, we focus on her pioneering outlook on intersectionality and its potential concerning the sociological debate, with special attention towards engaging in a critical appraisal of a social theory conceived in broad terms, in dialogue with anthropological as well as psychoanalitic elements. In this sense, the fact that she took part in Black Social Movements gave her interpretation a fundamental view on foremost – though not exclusively – racial and gender inequalities. Connecting her to the epistemological debates on universalism and indigenization (Akiwowo), the captive mind (Alatas) and the outsider within (Hill Collins) enables us to situate her contribution towards repositioning the viewpoints from Latin America. Our argument stresses ways in which her reflections critically foster anti-racism, hence interpreting her work as an expression to enact change among the established academic practice, as well as to wider preoccupations geared towards fostering democracy inside and outside the university. Hereto, referencing the elements of what she called cultural racism is paramount and shall be deepened in our discussion to understand the dynamics of racial, ethnic and gender prejudice, and how they affect democracy.