Today is Day: week remembers forró and people with visual impairments

Published on 12/12/2021 - 12:05 By Thiago Guimarães - Estagiário da Agência Brasil* - Brasília

Today is the weekday between December 12th and 18th, with dates linked to national culture, such as the Forró Day (13), and pays homage to professionals such as architects and urban planners (15) and museologists (18). On December 13th, the 15th anniversary of the signing of the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Day of the Visually Impaired and the Sailor's Day will also be remembered.

A few days before the date reserved on the calendar to celebrate the forró, this musical rhythm was declared intangible heritage of Brazil by the National Historical and Artistic Heritage Institute (Iphan) . With a unique and captivating rhythm, forró is of northeastern origin and carries strong traces of the population and culture of the Northeast, either through the lyrics of its songs or in its characteristic melody.

The program Em Dança , which aired on TV Brasil , dedicated an entire episode to forró, telling the story of the rhythm and its variations. Watch below:

And to learn the basic step of forró, just check out the class that Em Dança brought:

And one of the greatest representatives of forró is, without a doubt, Luiz Gonzaga, who received the title of Rei do Baião. Born on December 13, 1912 ( reread an article published by the EBC Portal on the occasion of its centenary in 2012 ), in Exu, in the hinterland of Pernambuco, Luiz Gonzaga took forró throughout Brazil and popularized this style of music. Therefore, the National Day of Forró is celebrated on December 13 of each year, in honor of the birth of this legend.

Grandes Musicais , on TV Brasil , rescued a historic performance by Luiz Gonzaga in the program Chão de Estrelas (1983), carried out by the former TVE-RJ . Check out:

Niemeyer, icon of architects

Oscar Niemeyer
Works sketched by Oscar Niemeyer - Photo: Paço Imperial/Disclosure

Along the same lines, the Architect and Urban Planner's Day is celebrated on December 15th because of Oscar Niemeyer, who was born on that date. The architect, whose trademark was reinforced concrete and curves, died in 2012, but left behind works that are part of many people's lives all over the world. História Hoje told the story of the genius of architecture:

The Architect and Urban Planner's Day reminds the importance of these professionals for the daily life of each person, through the planning of Brazilian cities. The date began to be celebrated throughout Brazil in 2018, when it was created by law. Thus, on this day that honors the profession of professionals who help in urban construction and make everyday life more beautiful, there's nothing better than visiting part of Niemayer's works, through this 2009 episode of Caminhos da Reportagem , on TV Brasil :

Disabled people

On a date established by the then president Jânio Quadros in 1961, the Day of the Visually Impaired, celebrated on December 13, aims to combat prejudice and discrimination. According to 2010 data from the Demographic Census of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), about 6.5 million Brazilians have some type of visual impairment .

Equipamento possibilitará a pessoas com deficiência visual enxergar obstáculos por meio do som
Blind photographer registers a tactile floor that guides the visually impaired- Photo: Disclosure/Blind Photographers/All Rights Reserved

They are people like the athlete, journalist and youtuber Marcos Lima, and the humorist Jeffinho, who are blind and share their stories and experiences with their followers. The two were interviewed in this episode of TV Brasil's Viralizador show:

In 2014, TV Brasil 's Special Program showed how visually impaired people are gaining their independence, and how important this is for their quality of life. Watch:

This year, the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities turns 15 years old. The text was approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 13, 2006, and promulgated in Brazil on August 25, 2009, as an internal legal norm. This convention recognizes and guarantees the rights of people with disabilities ( read more in Agência Brasil 's article ) and prohibits discrimination in all aspects of their lives ( understand what Agency Brasil 's training is in this matter ).

At Rádio MEC , the Attitude Inclusion board, which was aired on the program Todos as Vozes , is focused on the issues of people with disabilities and their social inclusion. Among them, the procedures for visually impaired passengers to travel safely by plane , the issue of violence against women with disabilities , accessibility in public transport , among others.

Also on the 13th of December, Manor's Day is celebrated, yet another date that arose on account of an important figure: Admiral Joaquim Marques Lisboa, the Marquês de Tamandaré, who was born on that day. He is considered the Patron of the Navy.

During the week, we still remember the 200th anniversary of the birth of French writer Gustave Flaubert, on the 12th, the tenth anniversary of the death of the carnival artist Joãosinho Trinta, on the 17th, and the National Day of the Museologist, on the 18th. A good choice is to browse the episodes of the series Knowing Museums , on TV Brasil , which tours some of the main museums in the country.

Check out the weekly Today is Day list with dates, historical facts and holidays:

December 12-18, 2021
12

Birth of French writer Gustave Flaubert (200 years old)

Birth of singer and composer Wilson Moreira (85 years old)

Death of Rio de Janeiro singer and composer Milton de Oliveira (35 years old) - in 1954, it was recorded by singer and radio broadcaster César de Alencar, then at the height of the success of his program on Rádio Nacional , the baião The marriage of Tomás' daughter and the march It's good in Japan , with Haroldo Lobo

Death of instrumentalist and composer João Pereira Filho (35 years old) - he worked as a soloist and director of regional orchestras and ensembles, in several radio and television stations in Rio de Janeiro: Rádio Nacional , Rádio Mayrink Veiga, TV Tupi, TV Excelsior and TV Globo

International Neutrality Day - date recognized by the UN

Launch of Ópera Rádio, on Rádio Sociedade (97 years)

13

Death of North American heavy and death metal musician Chuck Schuldiner (20 years old) - often referred to as The father of death metal , was elected by British magazine Kerrang! one of the most important figures in the history of metal

Death of the King of Portugal and Algarves, Dom Manuel I (500 years old) - continued the Portuguese explorations initiated by his predecessors, which led to the discovery of the sea route to India, the discovery of Brazil, and the coveted spice islands, the Moluccas , determinants for the expansion of the Portuguese empire. It also stimulated an art and architectural style known as Manueline.

Birth of São Paulo singer and composer Manu Lafer (50 years old)

Clube de Regatas do Flamengo wins the European/South American Cup, recognized world title, after winning 3 x 0 Liverpool (40 years old)

Launch of the two reais (BRL 2) banknote in Brazil (20 years)

The International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations (15 years)

National Day of Forró - in honor of Luiz Gonzaga's birth day

Day of the Visually Impaired - date established in 1961 by the then president Jânio Quadros

Sailor's Day - in honor of Joaquim Marques Lisboa, the Marquês de Tamandaré

The Serra da Capivara National Park (Piauí) is one of the properties inscribed by Unesco on the World, Cultural and Natural Heritage list (30 years)

14

Death of the multi-instrumentalist, conductor, arranger and composer from Paraíba, Severino Dias de Oliveira, known as Sivuca (15 years old)

National Day to Combat Poverty - commemoration in Brazil, which was established by Law No. 11,172, of September 6, 2005

15

Birth of Pernambuco lawyer, economist and politician Miguel Arraes (105 years old)

Death of the composer, conductor and professor from São Paulo Elias Álvares Lobo (120 years old) - author of the first Brazilian opera, in Portuguese, with a national theme: A Noite de São João , with libretto by José de Alencar and conducted by Carlos Gomes at Teatro São Pedro of Alcântara, on December 14, 1860

National Day of Solidarity Economy

Day of the Architect and Urban Planner - in honor of Oscar Niemeyer, born on this date

Inauguration of the Cultural Complex of the Republic (15 years)

The law that creates the University of Brasília (UnB) is sanctioned (60 years old)

16

Death of French composer Camille Saint-Saëns (100 years old) - French composer of the Romantic Era

Birth of Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky (155 years old) - he was professor at the Bauhaus and introducer of abstraction in the field of visual arts

Recognition of the Historic Center of Goiás as a World Heritage Site by Unesco (20 years)

Recognition of the Fernando de Noronha archipelago and the Atol das Rocas as World Natural Heritage by Unesco (20 years)

17

Death of the visual artist and carnival artist João Clemente Jorge Trinta, Joãosinho Trinta (10 years old)

Birth of the historian, film critic, professor, essayist and political activist from São Paulo Paulo Emílio Sales Gomes (105 years)

Birth of Rio de Janeiro actor, musician and comedian Augusto Temístocles da Silva Costa, Tião Macalé (95 years old)

Death of former North Korean dictator King Jong-Il (10 years old)

Birth of singer Gilliard Cordeiro Marinho (65 years old)

Death of Rio de Janeiro singer Sylvia Telles (55 years old)

Arson destroys Gran Circo Norte-Americano, in Niterói, killing more than 500 people (60 years old)

18

Death of composer and pianist from Rio de Janeiro Francisco Mattoso (80 years old)

National Museologist's Day - celebrated by Brazilians according to the decree of May 31, 2004, which also created the Week of Museums in Brazil

International Migrants Day

*supervised by Nathália Mendes

Text translated using artificial intelligence.

Edition: Nathália Mendes

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