Living on the edge of African dreams: new identities for African and African diaspora Caribbean students in Brazil

This article presents the results of a survey among African and Afro-Caribbean diaspora students in Brazil. They are participants of the federal PEC-G1 program, which grants tuition-free undergraduate spots in Brazilian universities. Before starting their undergraduate programs, however, they come to UFBA for linguistic and cultural instruction for a period of 8 months. The survey and the discussion of the results encompass interviews with 25 students about their cultural experiences and their intercultural development over the initial period of 6 months. They present a complex interaction of an originally middle-class background with professional aspirations in their home countries to a lower social status in a country with a history of slavery and racism. Many stories illustrate the conflicts they experience and the coping mechanisms they develop to navigate a new environment in which they will be immersed for a long period (at least 4 more years) while retaining as much of their original affiliations and identity as possible, especially considering that they are expected to return to their home countries after graduation.