In honour of women’s history month, every day in March, I’ll be highlighting a woman who changed the world.
Today’s woman is Dandara of Palmares, an Afro-Brazillian warrior who fought for her, and others, right to be free.
Name: Dandara of Palmares
Born: Mid 1600s in either Africa or Brazil
Died: 1694
Iconic for: Attempting to liberate slaves and being a heroine of the black resistance within colonial Brazil.
Life summary: Dandara was an Afro-Brazillian who lived in Quilombo dos Palmares, a community of escaped slaves of Indian, African and Brazillan nationalities who fought against colonial rule in Brazil. She was married to Zumbi who was the last king of the community.
Palmares was a self-sustaining community, allocating tasks based on the skill of each individual, regardless of gender. Dandara planted and hunted, providing food for the others, and with the rest of the group, created weapons to defend Palmares. She was a notable warrior and fought many times to protect the community which, from 1630, was repeatedly attacked by Dutch settlers.
Dandara used her influence on her husband to break his ties with his uncle, Ganga-Zumba, following his signing of a controversial peace-treaty that offered freedom to those born in Palmares in exchange for the release of currently-imprisoned Palmares residents. The treaty came with a big catch: all of those escaped slaves who had fleed to Palmares for refuge. As an advocate for the freedom of all, Dandara was furious at this. Shortly after, Ganga-Zumba was killed and Zumbi became leader of Palmares.
The Dutch ultimately captured Dandara in 1694 and she commited suicide, unwilling to return to a life of slavery, reflecting the rebellion that was so crucial to her spirit.
Crackle 