Though slavery was abolished 107 years ago, for black Brazilians the battle against apartheid is only just beginning. A decade ago, the Olodum movement took black culture and black music to the carnival for the first time. Other movements have developed like the Ax''e group which rescues abandoned children from the streets. At the refuge they can play football free from drugs, violence and the police. In dilapidated shanty towns, people are questioning their inferior status. As children splash in the muddy water, parents are rejecting the white Brazilian ideal promoted by the mass media. Maria de Lourdes from the Unified Black Movement concludes, '"we Negroes need to become conscious of our situation, but Brazilian society needs to change too."

Produced by ABC Australia