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From “Street Kid” to Global Icon: New Biography Chronicles the Transformative Life of Mestre Cobra Mansa

/ Sabrina Gledhill, PhD / Leave a comment

Editora Funmilayo Publishing is pleased to announce the upcoming publication of Dance of the Serpent: Portrait of Cobra Mansa, a Capoeira Angola Mestre, the definitive biography of one of the most influential figures in the Afro-Brazilian martial art/dance capoeira. Due out on 15 December 2025, the book traces the astonishing journey of a man who rose from the poverty-stricken streets of a Rio de Janeiro suburb to become a global master, transforming a martial art into a way of life, and dedicating his later career to environmental and social justice.

Mestre (Master) Cobra Mansa’s life is a profound testament to the power of Capoeira Angola as a tool for personal and communal liberation. Born in the deprived town of Duque de Caxias, he initially found refuge and strength in the practice, mastering the deceptive, strategic movements of the jogo (the game). He quickly ascended through the ranks of the GCAP (Grupo de Capoeira Angola Pelourinho), the organization founded by his mentor, Mestre Moraes. Along the way, he earned a PhD and became Dr Cobra Mansa.

The book details how, as a young man, Cobra Mansa became instrumental in establishing Capoeira Angola in the United States and worldwide. He has spent decades travelling, ensuring the art—a living link to the history of the Forced African Diaspora—retained its cultural authenticity and philosophical depth, always emphasizing that capoeira is more than a practice; it is a dynamic way of existing in the world.

The biography also examines the Mestre’s social activism. After teaching in the USA, Cobra Mansa returned to Brazil to found Kilombo Tenondé, an Afro-Brazilian centre dedicated to preserving the cultural heritage of Afro-Brazilians and Indigenous people while practicing permaculture and sustainable farming. His current mission is the preservation of ancestral wisdom and the construction of autonomous, thriving communities.

Dance of the Serpent is an essential read for enthusiasts of martial arts, Black history, cultural studies, and anyone seeking an inspiring account of transformation and purpose.

About Mestre Cobra Mansa

Mestre Cobra Mansa is a renowned master of Capoeira Angola, recognized globally for his deep understanding of the art’s African roots. His life has been dedicated to teaching, preserving cultural heritage, and applying the philosophies of Capoeira to environmental and community development projects in Brazil.

Mestre Cobra Mansa, Moscow, 24 April 2007. Photo by Zac Allan. Source: Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Manuel Querino: A Legacy Rediscovered (Again and Again)

/ Sabrina Gledhill, PhD / Leave a comment

For decades, I’ve been fighting to bring Manuel Querino, a pioneering Afro-Brazilian scholar, out of the shadows. Last week, I found a new ally in that fight: a PhD student at the prestigious University of São Paulo (USP), who has made Querino the focus of his thesis. His name is Fernando Filho, he is a sociologist, and his approach to what I call “Querinology” is to answer three questions:

  • how can Querino’s theses contribute to Brazilian social thinking?
  • what led to his “invisibility” in social theory?
  • to what extent are the subjects Querino dealt with also addressed by renowned authors like Gilberto Freyre and Florestan Fernandes?

Speaking on Google Meet, we spent over an hour discussing our approaches to Querino. Fernando told me how he struggled to get his PhD accepted by a university – being turned down by more than one before getting accepted at USP. He also said that he has been speaking about Querino at conferences in several Latin American countries and finding that the Afro-Brazilian polymath is still a complete unknown there.

I shared some sources, including the collection of essays in Manuel Querino (1851-1923), and explained how I began researching his life and work – thanks to my MA supervisor at UCLA, the late great E. Bradford Burns. I also observed that when I first arrived in Brazil in 1986, Querino had been largely forgotten or, worse, dismissed as an unreliable source. It took years of effort and many publications to change that.

What I took away from our conversation was

(a) despite the fact that I and other scholars, including Jeferson Bacelar, Luiz Freire, Maria das Graças de Andrade Leal, and Jaime Nascimento, have been writing and lecturing about Querino for decades, he is still largely unknown in Brazil’s elite universities; and

(b) ensuring that his life and legacy are not forgotten is a generational task.

Clearly, there is still much work to be done in bringing Querino the recognition he deserves. But with passionate scholars like Fernando Filho taking up the mantle, I’m hopeful for the future of ‘Querinology.'”

A luta continua (the fight goes on).

Sabrina Gledhill