The goal of this essay is to show that the reflection on race relations in Brazil by sociologist Guerreiro Ramos, in the 1950s, contained elements of what would later consolidate itself as a Theory of Whiteness whose central point is to examine the constitution of whiteness in a system of race relations instead of the “black people issue”. Subsequently, I demonstrate how the issue of whiteness, for Guerreiro, is intimately connected to his normative conception of nation, and then examine tension points between his conception and blackness theories, which he used as source and inspiration, as well as more recent theories, such as Black Atlantic and African Diaspora. I finish the article by arguing that the issues pointed out by Guerreiro, such as the criticism towards the connection of whiteness with an emancipatory nation project, remain fresh in today’s world, as much for Brazil as it is for the rest of the world.
Guerreiro Ramos; Whiteness; Race Relations; Black People; Nation