The purpose of this article is to present the paths for the approval of Law 10.639/2003. We propose to understand how the Brazilian Black Movement act-ed politically, based on an agenda of de-mands, to make the teaching of African history and Afro-Brazilian culture man-datory across the curriculum. The text also addresses the debates surrounding the draft laws that led to its sanction. The political demands arising from the struggle of black activists made it possi-ble to implement affirmative action policies and practices aimed at the black population and the educational field. In this sense, the theoretical and analytical discussion led us to perceive this social movement as an educator and as a po-litical actor in the struggle for the inclu-sion of anti-racist and multicultural ed-ucation.