Visiting Scholars

Paulo Ramos

Paulo Ramos, native of no land but the womb of his mother Terezinha Ramos de Jesus, is an artist, poet and lawyer currently pursuing his doctoral degree in the Graduate Program in Social Sciences, concentrating in Gender and Black Studies, at São Paulo’s Catholic University, the Pontifícia Universidade Católica. He is a member of several study groups including the Nucleus for Studies of Urban Research (Nepur), Racism Observatory (Observatório do Racismo), and the Nucleus for Research on Sexuality, Feminism, Gender and Difference, INANNA). He is the creator of Pretaquisador, a stamp of approval for books on race and Black Studies.

Paulo’s research project Bodies of Water (“Corpos d’água”) explores environmental racism and Black women’s relationships to water. Part of his work offers artistic performance that delves into conceptual realms through poetry and corporeal expression, and he has published a volume of poetry also entitled Bodies of Water. Paulo’s performance invites a sensory experience while reflecting on environmental racism and transcending racial and class boundaries. Focusing on the connection between water and Black women, Paulo’s work highlights the draining of dreams and lives from Black bodies by the state, a situation that dates back to colonial Brazil. The situation Paulo examines constitutes an ongoing cycle of violence deeply rooted in the legacy of slavery and entrenched within institutional frameworks.

Center for Research on Race and Ethnicity in Society
Schuessler Institute for Social Research
1022 E. 3rd St., Room 209,
Bloomington, IN 47405
812-855-8016
Office Hours: Monday - Friday: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm