Slaves and Afro-descendants: a look at social movements from development studies and International Relations

Abstract

In recent years, as a result of globalization processes, new transnational actors grouped in social movements have emerged on the international scene. This article suggests the role played by non-state actors based on the paradigmatic cases of slaves and Afro-descendants in Latin America, in the study of International Relations and development. It invites researchers to reflect on the presence of slaves and people of African descent in the configuration of Latin American states. Likewise, it tries to understand the formation of the cultural identity of the slave from their daily life and their role in the formation of the capitalist system. That is why Césaire raises the idea of colonialism and blackness to claim the existence of a black identity. Finally Schutz, Carretero attend to subjectivity as a dimension that allows human beings to build their own identity. Methodologically, we start from these two points of view, although they are different, they are not mutually exclusive. A critical thought is proposed against the orthodox vision of International Relations to historically understand the place of slaves and Afro-descendants in Latin America. The results point out that slaves and their offspring in Latin America constitute one of the missing groups within the international policies of the States and development studies.