For three days, the indigenous communicators of the wakywai network were gathered to add knowledge in the workshop for the production of the Anna Yakaré Newsletter, a newsletter of the Communication Department of the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR), which brings the main news of the year to indigenous communities.
The 14 indigenous communicators from different regions and municipalities, Alto Cauamé (Alto Alegre), Raposa (Normandia), Baixo Cotingo (Normandia), Serra da Lua (Cantá and Bonfim), Tabaio (Alto Alegre), Wai-wai (São Luís do Anauá) and mountains (Uiramutã), share activities carried out in indigenous communities and follow reports of the experiences of guests who use communication, art and activism as a tool for strengthening and indigenous protagonism.
Among the guests were journalists, Mayra Wapichana, former advisor to Joenia Wapichana and current consultant in Communication, Georgina Sarmento, visual artist and teacher, Mari Wapichana, digital influencer and the first indigenous miss of Roraima, Raquel Wapichana, coordinator of the Youth Center of the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR), and Okaba Aruak, indigenous activist.
During the conversation circle, they shared their experiences along the way in the construction oftheirstories, important moments that mark the trajectory of indigenous communication in Roraima.
Indigenous digital influencer Mari Wapichana recalled the challenges at the beginning of her career, especially the criticism in the comments on her posts. "Every Miss is standardized, but I arrived breaking this taboo, showing the reality of my community. I walked barefoot, disheveled, and that made people like what I showed," Mari recalled.
Even in the face of the attacks that still exist today, Mari highlighted indigenous empowerment on social networks and the importance of indigenous people occupying more and more in these spaces.
"I arrived breaking the concepts that non-indigenous people have about us. Today, thank God, we are occupying our spaces, now we have social networks to talk about us, our struggles, our pains, so that we can tell our stories and not others," said the digital influencer.
Through indigenous art, Georgina Sarmento and Okaba Arawak, take indigenous activism to other states and countries, Georgina uses instagram to promote her work, she is the author of several works of art. According to the artist, social networks have two sides, one is the pressure to feed the page with the content and the other is that she can maintain work contact.
"I've already done the art for Folha de São Paulo, I was able to apply the embroidery in a magazine that is nationally recognized. I always try to be in these spaces that are not reached by us indigenous, because then I know that we are trying to deconstruct the stereotypes that build about us," said the artist.
Okaba Arawak, has been working with art since 1980, has produced documentaries, books, documentaries, works of art, is currently exhibiting in London and Paris, the money raised is reverted to collective struggle. Okaba recalled the demonstration in the form of art held in April at the Free Land Camp, in Boa Vista, where he and other artists used red paint that represented the blood of the Yanomami people and poured it on the sidewalk of the miner's monument.
"We are the protagonists of all this, we are the ones who know our reality, a long time ago our story was told without our participation, today we are not present and strong in the struggle and resistance," said the artist
Raquel Wapichana, coordinator of the Youth Center, told her trajectory of struggle with leaders until she became a reference for young people, always remembering the challenges faced. Raquel will represent the indigenous youth of Roraima at COP-28, along with the CIR delegation, recalled that it is a very great and important opportunity and responsibility, and encouraged the communicators not to give up on their dreams.
"Today it's me, tomorrow it could be you, my dream was to be a communicator, it took time, but I made it happen, so be firm in your dreams, move forward," asked Raquel.
As a last activity this Wednesday (1st), the communicators participate in the practical activity of producing the second edition of 2023 of the Anna Yakaré Newsletter. The copy will be distributed at the II Expanded Meeting of the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR) and distributed to the organization's base regions.