Passo ruim 1868: The strategies of the xokleng in the borders of their territories in the upper itajaí river

Abstract

On the night of January 13, 1868, a group of Xokleng indigenous people attacked and killed six people at a place called Passo Ruim, on Estrada da Mata near the village of Rio Negro, then the Province of Paraná, Brazil. This event is approached within the complex socio-historical and cultural relations that permeated the process of deterritorialization of the Xokleng in the upper valley of Itajaí do Norte River in the second half of the nineteenth century. Xokleng's perception of the invaders is investigated together with the strategies they developed to deal with them. An overview of the presence of the Xokleng in the process of occupation of the region is given, showing that they followed each step the settlers made in their territories. Afterwards, the events of Passo Ruim are analyzed, trying to find out how the indigenous group acting there was related to the expeditions sent in its pursuit, emphasizing its protagonism.