In the colonial courtrooms of the Amazon, Indigenous voices did more than defend. They redefined the meaning of freedom. André Luís Bezerra Ferreira uncovers how Native communities used memory, kinship, and oral tradition as powerful legal tools to challenge colonial rule. Drawing from overlooked archives like the Livro de Assentos of the Junta das Missões, his work shows that Indigenous peoples were not passive subjects but active negotiators of law and status. Courts became spaces of struggle where terms like ‚captive‘, ‚slave‘, and ‚free‘ were constantly reinterpreted through Indigenous knowledge systems. Oral histories, rituals, and relational ties anchored claims to liberty and protection in a legal world built to exclude them.

Formulare, Vorschriften, endlose Wartezeiten? Klingt nach Gefühlsleere? Ganz im Gegenteil. In Deutschlandfunks Systemfragen spricht unsere Direktorin Marietta Auer über etwas Unerwartetes: Bürokratie bewegt uns – im wörtlichen Sinn. Sie kann beruhigen, erleichtern, Vertrauen schaffen. Oder uns zur Weißglut treiben. Denn wie wir Ämter erleben, sagt oft mehr über unsere Gesellschaft aus als über uns selbst.

When the article is published and the project ends, what remains? The data. In her entry for our blog ‚Legal History Insights‘, Polina Solonets makes the case that research data is not a technical afterthought - it’s the foundation of scholarly work. With the institute’s new Research Data Policy now in place, this new blog series explores why managing data well isn’t just about compliance, but about clarity, credibility, and care. From backups to citations, from loss prevention to open access - this is your practical guide to making research data part of your research identity.