Natural Seeds and Land Reform: A Look at the Film Ciclovida in Context

Lands once barren
Swallow seeds of revolution
Help my children grow

Balance on two wheels
Earth feels more like home
We've travelled far and wide,
To heal the wounds of time

When I die of exhaustion
Bury me without my tools
Without wasted land

Monsanto killed my countryside
My village was poisoned with lies
Flood the land with farmers
To heal the wounds of time

I stumbled upon the film, Ciclovida (in English, Lifecycle) by chance. Recently I decided to go read and write at my local alternative library, The Flying Brick. Quite often The Flying Brick will host speakers and screen films. This particular Thursday I was pleasantly surprised to walk-in on the beginning of Ciclovida, an independent film about two Brazilians, Inacio do Nacimento and Ivania de Alencar, who traveled 6,000 miles by bike to collect natural seeds and raise awareness about the harmful effects of agribusiness in South America.

image courtesy: Jerry Zurek (above left), Kushil (above right)   

Shortly after I arrived at The Flying Brick, I followed a crowd of people into the backyard to see a white sheet hung on tree limbs, rows of chairs and behind the chairs, a row of three bicycles that would power the DVD player and projector. Soon after I sat down Inacio do Nacimento began to sing songs about his struggle against industrial agribusiness. Ivania de Alencar sang as well. Although Ivania's voice was more quiet than Inacio’s, hers had an understated and enchanting power. The songs were sung in Portuguese, but translations of the songs were projected on the screen.

The couple performed protest songs in the tradition of the Brazil's Landless Rural Workers Movement. These songs were also featured in the film. While the film focused mostly on the importance of natural seed collection, the songs discussed issues of central importance to the Landless Workers Movement, including industrialization, capitalism and the desire for land and independence. Today, the couple lives as farmers, organizers and musicians on the Barra do Lemme farm collective in Pentecoste, Cerara, Brazil. The Barra do Lemme was unused land occupied by landless workers and is now a space for ecologically sound and communal living.

This is where the couple began their 6,000 mile round trip journey to Argentina and back, with the goal of discussing resistance to industrialized farming techniques and collecting natural seeds. Although the focus of Ciclovida is natural seed collection, the Landless Workers Movement lay at the heart of the film. Ivania and Inacio’s journey was not an isolated event, but rather a moving (literally and figuratively) and documented moment in the continuing struggle for agrarian reform in Brazil.

The Brazilian Landless Rural Workers Movement or in Portuguese, Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST) began in the 1960s with the formation of the Ligas Componesas (Peasant Leagued) led by Francisco Juliao. The Ligas were supported by President Joao Goulart, but Goulart was driven out of office by a military coup that resulted in 24 years of military rule of government. During this time, the military rejected proposals to redistribute land and opted for rapid industrialization. As a result, rural Brazillians were left without land or work. Peasants moved to cities and Brazil became the 4th most urbanized countries in the world.

The Landless Workers Movement as it exists today officially began in 1985 with the creation of the MST. As the nation was fighting for direct elections of president, the MST held its first national congress in Curitiba, Brazil. In a history of the movement available on the official Friends of the MST website, a MST representative explained, “If the democratic system wanted to sort the land problem, we would have agrarian reform already. But it hurts the interests of big capitalists.” Industrialization had taken its toll on Brazil, and there was little promise for workers even in a democratic political system. During the first national congress the movement’s motto became, “To occupy is the only solution,” and a brave method of resistance was born.

 
Approximately 55,000 rural properties (300,000 acres) are classified as unproductive by the government. Members of the MST claim that they do not invade land. Rather, they occupy it, as the wealthy farmer is not using the land it should be given to the landless to work.  Life as an MST occupier is often difficult, moving from camp to camp with few resources. The government sometimes supplies food and water, but there is often not enough to go around. Most occupiers live in tents made from plastic tarp and tree branches. Some occupations have the approval of those who own the land. However, some occupations result in violent conflict between the state and workers; such as the Eldorado do Carajas Massacre of 1996.
   
Still, camp-life on rural land is a preferred alternative to city life where many compete for few jobs and raise their children amongst violence, disease and pollution. The MST provides hope for the landless. “Landless” is an identity that people of the MST unite under in order to achieve their common goals. “We are waiting to get our land. So we can pass it to our children...[We] love working the land,” said one couple living on an MST camp. Land means independence. With a plot of land, poor farmers can feed their families and save money. “We would rather grow food than be given food,” said one man featured in the MST documentary.
   
The film Ciclovida exemplifies how joining the MST provides Brazilian families with rewards and independence. The land that Ivania and Inacio live on, Barra do Lemme, is an example of a successful occupation. Rather than being evicted by police, the collective has thrived. Once landless, the occupants have built houses and a community of farmers and environmental activists. Ongoing projects on Barra do Lemme include: a small-scale windmill-powered water pump project, an irrigation system, a community bicycle workshop and solar panels to increase energy autonomy. Ivania and Inacio’s bike ride promoted Barra do Lemme’s perhaps most important project: seed collection.
   
Agrarian reform is meaningless without the ability to grow one’s own food. As such, natural seeds are a key part of life on Barra do Lemme. Large food corporations argue that they are preventing hunger through science. Monsanto's website states, “if there is one word to describe what Monsanto is about it would have to be farmers. We create the seeds, traits, and crop protection chemicals that help farmers produce more food using fewer resources.” Maybe the lives of farmers who can afford to choose industrialized farming techniques gain from corporate agriculture practices. However, for most rural Brazilians, scientific agriculture has poisoned the environment, cut jobs and placed farms in the hands of the wealthy.
   
Ciclovida brings the perspective of working farmers to the forefront of the discussion of scientifically fueled agriculture. The film explains the impact of seeds sold by large food corporations that are bioengineered to not reproduce. When it comes time to plant again farmers turn to the corporations for more seeds. By purchasing seeds from companies like Monsanto, farmers enter into a cycle of dependence. This is what Ivania and Inacio set out to prevent when they travelled to collect and share natural seeds.
   
Filmmakers follow couple as they left their home and families to promote natural seed collection and debunk propaganda of large food corporations. The couple stopped in rural villages to discus methods of farming, crops and the people's perspectives on industrialization. They also gathered seeds that they would bring back to their village to farm. The filmmakers did a wonderful job of allowing the protagonists and their peers to lead the dialogue of the film, rather than imposing their own perspectives on the issue of agribusiness.

 
Today, 46% of the land in Brazil is owned by 1% of the population. Those who own the land are typically rich farmers who subscribe to ideologies of modernization. As they biked from Brazil to Argentina (and back) Inacio, Ivania and the documentary crew stopped several times to reflect on the ways the South American landscape has shifted from workers in the fields to large machines. Besides unemployment and landlessness, the film also documents the increase of illness among people in rural villages since industrialization. As the couple pressed on, they witnessed countless examples of destruction, but they also saw glimpses of rebirth.
   
When they left Barro do Lemme, Inacio and Ivania did not have a plan as to where they would sleep, eat or visit along the way. They packed tents and few supplies. There were times when the journey seemed as if it would not be completed due to lack of funding. However, at these moments individuals and groups who shared Inacio and Ivania's vision of agrarian reform and organic farming would provide the couple with the resources and encouragement needed to push onwards. As Inacio pointed out, these groups and individuals prove that a Brazil without industrialized farming is possible.

    
Of course industrialized development has its benefits. The problem of overpopulation is a real threat, and could result in starvation of millions. However, destroying our environment and dispossessing farmers of the right to work is not a sustainable solution. Starvation occurs even with the scientific intervention of companies like Monsanto. In fact, these companies may make the problem of poverty worse by persuading Brazilians into cycles of corporate dependence.    
   
Land is equated with independence throughout the film. Although the state has yet to recognize the demands of the Landless Rural Workers Movement, small actions like riding bicycles, preserving natural seeds and occupying unused land have proven to be powerful sources of agency. Yet, there is still much work to be done. This is why Inacio and Ivania are currently traveling the United States with lead filmmakers Matt and Laurence Feinstein to educate communities about their philosophy of good relations with the Earth and the inspiring stories of landless peasants.


To see the tour schedule and learn more about Ciclovida visit:
 http://www.ciclovida.org

Comments

I forgot to mention The Flying Brick's website: http://flyingbrickrva.wordpress.com/