University of São Paulo: New FEA-USP publishing house strengthens independent peripheral literature
Literary and academic production has always been, including at USP, something very elitist and originally aimed at readers from wealthy families with a tradition of reading and research. But that is changing thanks to community and popular publishers and newspapers that aim to democratize access to the fifth art – and also to the world of scientific and philosophical discussions. And one of these publishers is Estação Povoar, which was launched on the 26th, in a festive event involving students, especially those who identify themselves as peripheral.
As a result of the initiative of the founders of Periferia Livr@ , an extension and culture group at USP’s Faculty of Economics, Administration, Accounting and Actuarial Science (FEA), the Estação Povoar publishing house was being incubated by the group as a virtual publishing house, whose mission would be to publish and to disseminate literature produced by artists from the outskirts of the city of São Paulo, in addition to valuing and publishing black authors and making teaching materials available for teachers and educators.
A number of texts, including e-books , audiobooks and teaching materials, have already been designed, revised, received covers and some have even been translated into Spanish. As they were produced in e-book format , they will be published in the publisher’s newest app, which is currently being developed by the technology team. “We aim to value the power of narratives, both as objects and methodologies, providing the strengthening of interpersonal ties and promoting the feeling of social, cultural and political belonging, collaborating with a more active citizenship”, informs the group’s website.
FEA teacher Ana Carolina Rodrigues, one of the creators of Periferia Livr@ and general director of the publishing house, says that there are already around 18 finished works and that such books are already being used in workshops and presentations in several schools. “A very symbolic issue of this launch is the possibility of bringing Estação Povoar to life, building a narrative and making pitches to attract investments, because the resources we have are still limited and the application that is being developed requires a lot”, explains the company. teacher. Despite the fact that the publishing house is virtual, as are all finished works and are under development, Ana Carolina says that it is a future plan to print the works as well.
Launch
The publishing house’s launch event took place in the FEA’s experience and had a poetry soiree, a literary book sales stand and guests “child poets”: students from the Milton Ferreira de Albuquerque Municipal School of Elementary Education (Emef), located in the Jardim Beatriz, in the south of São Paulo. These students, who learned about the project through some professors in lectures at the school, had the opportunity to learn more about the publishing house and about USP. Some of them even recited at the soiree. “I didn’t know much about what was going to happen at the soiree. Professor Damásio, of Portuguese, said very briefly about what it would be, but even so I was very excited for the event”, says Larissa, a 9th grade student who recited a poem about love and carnival. She says that the teacher chose some of the best students, those he knew were fond of literature and poetry. “I loved the event. It was something fun and relaxed, something really cozy and fun. I loved every poem said by everyone there. I think it is very important to have more soirees like this, both for the public in the periphery and for other publics. In my opinion, I think we all need a little bit of this as it is a tool for various causes and it can influence people,” he comments.
Clara, another Emef poet Milton Ferreira Albuquerque, says that she participated in a project at school where she created a poem for a documentary about racism. His poetry Freedom of Expressionit deals with “opinions” that are not freedom of expression and received a lot of applause. “I loved the experience of being there [at the soirée], because during the event I realized that each poem carries its truth, and reality itself, especially poems of soirées, where they talk about injustice, skin color, of social struggles. So, I liked it a lot because they talk a lot about it, and behind the poetry, each reality is present there in a different way”, comments Clara. She says that listening to poems like this is very important to raise awareness of social problems, as it is something capable of holding more attention, it is more direct and stronger than a standardized text or a pre-shaped speech. “I felt really good on stage. I saw that my two friends were a little embarrassed but I don’t have that, I feel good when I’m talking to people, especially when it’s for a cause. I wasn’t there saying anything, I was talking about a reality, of people going on the internet to spread hate and say it’s freedom of expression. I think there should be more events like this.”
literary periphery
Periferia Livr@ is an extension project of FEA that aims to revolutionize reading. Created by professors Ana Carolina Rodrigues and Kavita Hanza from a project called Potencializa: Program to empower young multipliers in peripheral contexts, won a public notice for Social Entrepreneurship, and thus can be developed. As a project focused on ways to develop social businesses in peripheral regions, Periferia Livr@ has the participation of professors and students from USP, to high school students. Students have the opportunity to carry out the group’s activities on a paid basis by grants from USP, Fapesp, CNPq, among others, enabling the main objective of the project: to unite teaching and learning with cultural and literary production, entrepreneurship, in addition to adding to the students’ curriculum and introduce them to black and peripheral literature.
Students from FEA, Faculty of Philosophy, Letters and Human Sciences, School of Communications and Arts, Institute of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Education, Institute of Psychology, Institute of Mathematics and Computer Sciences and Polytechnic School, in addition to professors from FEA in different areas of activity within the group. In addition to supporting the production and consumption of literature in the peripheries, the initiative also aims to help Latin immigrants with the processes of inclusion and learning Portuguese. With this action, the group intends to reach the internationalization of the knowledge produced in the Brazilian peripheries through the translation into Spanish of the works.