Sexual Abuse in Capoeira: What We Know and What We Can Do
Today’s episode is going to be a complete departure from the previous format of this podcast. There will be no music, and we will not be talking about a specific person or a specific time period. Instead, we will be talking about the pervasive problems of sexual harassment and abuse in capoeira that recent news reports have once again highlighted. This is unfortunately not new news, over the years this topic has come up several times as movements like MeToo have encouraged people who were victimized to come forward.
I have a few main goals for this episode. First is to relay the details of what we know has happened. Too many times people, especially beginners, get incomplete stories or information because people don’t want to talk about difficult topics. This makes those people feel excluded and makes it very difficult for them to make decisions on their involvement and future in capoeira.
Second is to educate on the realities of sexual harassment and abuse, at least in the US. I frequently notice a fundamental misunderstanding of how common these crimes are, how infrequently they are reported, and how rare false reports are. This misunderstanding severely hampers discussion on these topics and really hurts our chances at progress.
Finally, I want to examine what aspects of capoeira structures and culture contribute to perpetuating these abuses, and what we can do to improve those things. It’s true that these problems exist everywhere, but there are structures, especially those of power, that make them more prevalent or easier to hide. I don’t claim to have all the answers here, I am only taking a look at available research to suggest what we can try.
Trigger warning for anyone listening, in this episode we will be talking about sexual violence, abuse, and rape, in some cases involving minors.
Email: mikepinto@comcast.net
Sources:
https://apublica.org/2021/06/capoeiristas-denunciam-mestres-de-um-dos-maiores-grupos-do-pais-por-crimes-sexuais/
https://capoeirapensativa.files.wordpress.com/2021/06/cdofinal.pdf
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/11/organizations-sexual-harassment/546707/
https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/2021-04/cv18.pdf
https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/2021-04/2015data-brief508.pdf
https://localprofile.com/2018/01/02/victims-not-report-sexual-abuse/
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