Levantamos in Action

We have not disappeared! Since Levantamos' November Zumbi event on this side of the equator, we have been working hard on the other side to further Levantamos' mission by building our network in Brazil, specifically concentrating in Bahia and the Northeast of the country. We aim to not only use U.S. dollars to build ties between the U.S. and the community of Afro-Brazilians, but to use both countries' most important resource: human resources, to fortify unions and build a bridge between the communities. Following are highlights from Levantamos' founding to the present:

. February 2004, Levantamos partners with Career Gear (currently MenzFit) for its inaugural event, "Mardi Gras Meets Carnaval" and raises funds for the organizations' first grant
 
. Grant presented in April 2004 to the Steve Biko Cultural Institute to fund Project Open Mind/Open Doors, a program Desenvolvido pela American Lorelei Williams, that prepares low-income Afro-Brazilian college students for leadership and careers in public service

. June 2004, founder Simone Manigo Truell joins Levantamos as organization's full time Executive Director. Organization opens an office in Salvador, Bahia

. June 2004, first Women's Collective event held in Washington, D.C

. July 2004, Women's Collective event in Salvador, Bahia brings together Afro-Brazilian and American women

. November 2004, the first annual Zumbi dos Palmares: A Celebration of Afro-Brazilian Culture takes place in Washington, D.C. Levantamos brings four Afro-Brazilians (chef and restaurateur Dona Ana Celia, capoeira professors Bomba and Chico, and award winning hip hop artist MC Aori) to Washington to lead the festivities and information sessions

. January 2005, Levantamos facilitates exchange in Salvador, Bahia, between Morehouse alums and three Bahian students who applied for and received full scholarships to study at Morehouse College, the United States' largest, private liberal arts college for African-American men

. February 2005, Levantamos launches Avocet Travel's Awakening Minds scholarship, a donor-directed initiative, and awards the first scholarship to Bahian Luciana Cruz Brito

. April 2005, Levantamos works with the Corredor da Liberdade (Liberdade Cultural Corridor) to introduce the initiative and promote it to U.S. travel companies and tourists

. July 2005, Levantamos partners with several communities and organizations in Bahia to publicize its second annual grant competition.