SIlencing the Drum

Join us November 4th at 6:00pm for a special event in collaboration with Napa Bookmine with Umi Vaughn. This is a free event, but we appreciate your RSVP so we can plan for your attendance. We also welcome donations from those who are able.

UMI VAUGHN is an independent scholar and musician. He has taught at California State University Monterey Bay. He is the author of Carlos Aldama’s Life in Batá: Cuba, Diaspora, and the Drum (Indiana University Press) and Rebel Dance, Renegade Stance: Timba Music and Black Identity in Cuba (University of Michigan Press).

ABOUT THE BOOK

Silencing the Drum exposes the profound struggle of Afro-Brazilian sacred music against escalating intolerance. Danielle N. Boaz and Umi Vaughan blend legal scholarship with ethnomusicology, offering a compelling narrative rooted in interviews with religious leaders, musicians, and activists across Brazil. This multidisciplinary exploration examines the relentless attacks against the practitioners of Afro-Brazilian religions—from discriminatory noise complaints in Bahia to vigilante violence in Rio de Janeiro.

The volume integrates multimedia elements including musical samples to vividly illustrate the struggles and resilience of Afro-Brazilian communities in the face of discrimination. As Silencing the Drum confronts the larger global issues of racism and religious freedom, it provides essential insights for scholars, activists, and anyone passionate about human rights and cultural preservation.