International
Black chefs carve out a place in Brazilian cuisine
| By AFP | Louis Genot |
From a tiny restaurant on a dead-end street come the enticing aromas of chicken, pork and shrimp as an award-winning chef slowly steams dim sum — the finger food typical of Cantonese cuisine.
This is not Hong Kong but rather Rio de Janeiro. And the cook is a black Brazilian.
“Many people ask me, ‘Where is the Chinese chef?’” Vladimir Reis, 38, says with a chuckle. He opened Dim Sum Rio almost two years ago in Laranjeiras, a wealthy neighborhood of the city.
“They ask me why I make Asian food and not African or Brazilian food,” said Reis. “But I am free to do what I like, without being restricted by what people think I should do because of the color of my skin or the country I come from.”
Things are going very well for this burly man with thin dreadlocks down to his shoulders. His dim sums are wildly popular and he has been named a winner in a new competition called the Black Gastronomy Prize.
This contest, whose first edition was held in November, honors the best black restaurant industry people in Rio in an array of categories such as waiter, sommelier, sous chef and pastry chef, all in a country where racism is deeply ingrained.
“There are many nice stories, and the time has come to acknowledge all of this talent,” said Breno Cruz, a university professor who created the prizes.
‘White universe’
Best restaurant honors went to Afro Gourmet, run by Dandara Batista, 37, who serves up African dishes in Grajau, a working-class neighborhood of Rio.
In the small kitchen of the eatery she opened in 2018, she fixes a dish called hauca rice — originally from Nigeria and featuring shrimp, dried meat and a golden sauce that is a blend of coconut milk and palm oil.
The menu also boasts a dish from Senegal called mafe and a South African one called chakalaka. Batista highlights where her creations come from by adorning them with little flags corresponding to the country.
Batista said she always felt a strong connection to the food of the northeastern city of Bahia, where her father’s family comes from.
“But when I did some research I realized there is a strong African influence on Brazilian cuisine in general,” said Batista, who wears her thick hair in braids.
Batista has been cooking since she was a girl but thought of it as a career option only after working for many years as a journalist.
“Gastronomy was always linked to a white universe, so I did not see myself there,” said Batista.
She switched jobs four years ago after taking a class in gastronomy.
She lamented the fact that there were no courses on African cuisine, so she learned how to make dishes from countries far from Brazil such as Angola, Cape Verde, and Sao Tome and Principe.
‘No reference point’
Like Batista, Reis’s life was also influenced by things not Brazilian, in his case a trip to Singapore. “When I saw dim sum the first time I thought it was marvelous, so delicate. Right away I said to myself, ‘we don’t have this in Rio.’”
Reis, born and raised in Rio, gives a personal touch to his dishes, using cassava and palm oil, which are basic ingredients in Brazilian and African cooking. At Dim Sum Rio, he decorates his dishes with edible flowers and green leaves of cabbage to cover them, like little roofs.
Reis had worked in several restaurants but never made it all the way to chef. Although he has a strong resume, he says that in job interviews white colleagues with less experience would always beat him out.
“They always wanted me to be a sous chef, or a basic cook,” said Reis, who grew up in a favela, or slum, in central Rio called Santa Teresa.
In Brazil black or mixed-race people account for 54 percent of the population but only 30 percent of leadership positions in companies.
Reis says he would have started his own business earlier if he had seen more black chefs in the news media.
“I only saw black chefs on reality shows from other countries. Here in Brazil I had no reference point. The job market has opened up in the last few years but racism is still very much a part of society.”
International
Japan lifts tsunami alert after strong 7.6-magnitude earthquake hits northern coast
A powerful 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck Japan’s northern coast on Monday, triggering several tsunami waves of up to 70 centimeters, authorities said. The tsunami alert was lifted in the early hours of Tuesday.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the quake occurred at 11:15 p.m. local time (14:15 GMT) off the coast of Misawa, at a depth of 53 kilometers. Japan’s Meteorological Agency (JMA) immediately issued a tsunami warning. The first wave reached a port in Aomori Prefecture at 11:43 p.m. (14:43 GMT), followed by others measuring up to 70 centimeters.
Public broadcaster NHK reported that an employee at a hotel in the city of Hachinohe confirmed that several people were injured. Live footage showed shattered glass scattered across roads, while many residents evacuated to the city hall seeking shelter.
The strong tremor was also felt in Sapporo, where emergency alerts were sent to residents’ mobile phones. A reporter in Hokkaido described a horizontal shaking that lasted around 30 seconds, making it difficult to stay standing.
Before the alert was lifted, the JMA had warned of the possibility of tsunami waves up to three meters high along Japan’s Pacific coast. Government spokesperson Minoru Kihara urged residents to remain in safe areas until the warning was officially lifted.
International
Interior Dept. redefines 2026 Patriotic Days, sparking criticism over removed civil rights holidays
A statement from the Department of the Interior announced that there will be eight designated “patriotic” days in 2026, most of them different from those recognized in the previous two years.
In addition to June 14, 2026—which marks both Flag Day and Donald Trump’s 80th birthday—the calendar includes Presidents’ Day on February 16, Memorial Day on May 5 in honor of U.S. soldiers killed in combat, Independence Day weekend from July 3–5, Constitution Day on September 17, and Veterans Day on November 11, which honors former service members.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (January 19, 2026) and Juneteenth (June 19)—a holiday commemorating the end of slavery—are typically included among free-entry days but have now been removed.
Critics argue that the changes are designed to promote the president while downplaying the nation’s history of slavery and the civil rights struggle.
“The president didn’t just add his own birthday to the list; he removed the two holidays that commemorate the African American fight for civil rights and freedom. Our country deserves better,” lamented Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Masto on X.
Starting in 2026, free admission on these eight selected days will apply only to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. “Non-residents will pay the regular entrance fee and the applicable non-resident rates,” the National Park Service (NPS) stated.
The cost of an annual entry pass will rise to $80 for residents and $250 for non-residents. Those without an annual pass will be required to pay $100 per person to enter 11 of the most visited national parks, in addition to the standard entrance fee.
Earlier this year, Trump marked his 79th birthday—which coincided with the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army—by organizing an unusual military parade in downtown Washington.
The United States has 63 national parks, federally protected areas designated by Congress. Last year, they received more than 330 million visitors.
International
Five laboratories investigated in Spain over possible African Swine Fever leak
Catalan authorities announced this Saturday that a total of five laboratories are under investigation over a possible leak of the African swine fever virus, which is currently affecting Spain and has put Europe’s largest pork producer on alert.
“We have commissioned an audit of all facilities, of all centers within the 20-kilometer risk zone that are working with the African swine fever virus,” said Salvador Illa, president of the Catalonia regional government, during a press conference. Catalonia is the only Spanish region affected so far. “There are only a few centers, no more than five,” Illa added, one day after the first laboratory was announced as a potential source of the outbreak.
Illa also reported that the 80,000 pigs located on the 55 farms within the risk zone are healthy and “can be made available for human consumption following the established protocols.” Therefore, he said, “they may be safely marketed on the Spanish market.”
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