Sidnei Munhoz

Sidnei J. Munhoz is Professor of Contemporary History at the Universidade Estadual de Maringá. He has led an effort to expand access to US State Department records in Brazil, coordinating a project to digitize microfilmed copies of documents produced between 1908 and 1939 and 1945 to 1959 in collaboration with the Brazilian National Archive. Sidnei currently coordinates the Graduate Program in History and the Laboratory for Studies of the Present Time (Laboratório de Estudos do Tempo Presente) at the State University of Maringá. Sidnei also was a professor of the Graduate Program in Comparative History of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro from 2004-2013. Over the past ten years, his research has focused on the origins of the Cold War and relations between Brazil and the US in the early years of the Cold War. He has organized, written and co-authored numerous books, including Relações Brasil EUA, which was translated into English and released in 2013 at the Frankfurt International Book Fair.

In the conversation below, he discussed the project, its significance for Brazilians, and other related matters.

How did the idea for the project originate?

It was James Green’s idea. He called me in November 2012 and told me he was thinking about digitizing American diplomatic records produced during the period of the 1964 coup and the so-called “anos de chumbo” (“years of lead”) ushered in by the military conspirators.  Green told me that he had spoken with Marco Aurélio Santana (Projeto Memórias Reveladas) and that Marco Aurélio suggested he get in touch with me since he knew that I had digitized microfilms produced by NARA [National Archives and Record Administration], a vast archive on US-Brazil relations in earlier periods (1908-1940 e 1945-1959). Green and I have known each other since the 2002 BRASA [Brazilian Studies Association] conference in Atlanta. He had published a chapter entitled “Opondo-se à ditadura nos Estados Unidos: direitos humanos e a organização dos Estados Americanos” in the book Relações Brasil-Estados Unidos: séculos XX e XXI (2011), edited by Francisco Carlos Teixeira da Silva and I (the book was translated into English and released at the Frankfurt International Book Fair in 2013.) Right away I agreed to participate in this undertaking since for two years I had hoped to complete the digital archive already in existence at the CDO (Central de Documentação, or Documentation Center) at the State University of Maringá (Universidade Estadual de Maringá, or UEM), Paraná. The familiarity and trust between us was very important since in only a few days we were able to work together on the project and arrange financing.

In a few days I wrote to Jim informing him that the dean of research and graduate training at UEM, Professor Mauro Ravagnani, confirmed that UEM would finance a large part of the project. With that good piece of news, the project’s momentum intensified. Not everything went perfectly smoothly since the bureaucratic and legislative differences between the United States and Brazil consumed a lot of our time and presented many obstacles to our ability to sign a collaborative agreement between Brown and UEM. At times the differences seemed insurmountable. In fact, we were only able to seal the deal on the week Priscila Borba da Costa, Antonio Bianchet Jr, and I travelled from Brazil to the United States.

What is your role in this project?

I am one of the coordinators along with James Green, although, really, Jim manages the biggest part of the project. As you know, my presence in Washington was during the initial period of the project and the definition of the team’s first steps. I have followed the proceedings from Brazil but the experience of being there is yours [the student researchers].

What does this project mean to you personally? What does it mean in a historical context? What does it mean for Brazil?

This project will allow for the digitization and wider accessibility of documentation produced on Brazil by the American diplomatic corps during a very important period in Brazilian history. Through this project it will also be possible to request the declassification of documents still under wraps and that could be important in clearing up certain aspects of the period’s history. Therefore, through this project, it will be possible to make available to researchers all around the world important documents related to Brazil-US relations and this will certainly impact historical studies on the relations between both countries and the dictatorship installed by the 1964 coup. For me, this is an opportunity to contribute to the advancement of historical studies on relations between the two largest countries in the Americas and to improve our understanding of the dictatorial period in Brazil. In addition, the project will be enormously valuable in forming a new generation of researchers in both countries. In addition to devising their own projects these young people will be able to contribute something of social relevance to Brazil by creating dossiers on specific themes that will be forwarded to the National Truth Commission, created by President Dilma Rousseff with the aim of investigating crimes committed during the dictatorship.

What is your primary area of focus as a professor? 

For the last fifteen years I have dedicated myself to studying the Cold War (historiography, American foreign policy and Brazil-US relations). Thus, the present project fits into my research interests. In general I teach courses related to the history of the present time or related to historiography and theories of history.

Have you been involved in projects similar to this one? What are the differences and similarities? 

I coordinate the CDO at UEM. I have managed projects aimed at giving the CDO resources to digitize documents. At the CDO we have digitized important archives related to the history of Paraná state, Brazil, and Brazil-US relations. However, the Opening the Archives Project is very different in that it involves a group of students from two universities and two different countries. Furthermore, the experience of working at NARA is really unique.

What do you expect students to learn from this experience?

For the Brazilian students the international experience, working in the National Archives, wil help further their careers. Priscila studies American history and Antonio studies the 1964 coup. Both will therefore benefit immensely from their involvement with the project. For the Brown students, I believe this is a unique opportunity to really get to know the documentation produced by the United States on the period of military rule in Brazil. With that experience they will gain a deeper knowledge of the country’s history and culture. Overall, it will be a bonding experience for students from both countries to work closely together and develop strong ties.

Is there anything you would like to add? 

I hope that everything continues to run smoothly and I hope to bring another group of Brazilian students to Washington in 2014. I hope the students from Brown develop acquire an even deeper interest in Brazil and its history and I put myself at their disposal should they ever want to spend some time at UEM. Finally, I want to reiterate that this has been a very good partnership. Working with Jim and the whole team has really been a fantastic experience.