The tradition of using large carts pulled by oxen has been part of the culture of Cururupu, a municipality on the northeast coast of Maranhão, since it was founded. And while when it arrived it was for the construction of the town and the forced labor of enslaved people in the mills, today it characterizes a social group and a region. Contradictorily, the carreiros (individuals responsible for driving/hooking up the animals) were left with traffic restrictions, discomfort with the dirt caused by the animal waste that they sometimes leave on the streets; being associated with what is obsolete, out of its time and; making traffic accidents possible; finally, considering that carreiros compete, or want to, with cars or motorcycles. Considering this context, the aim is to analyze the coping strategies used to change the socially repressive scenario that has resulted in it being ratified as a local and regional cultural reference, which will be outlined based on participant observation of the Gathering (2022/23), bibliographical research and interviews and informal conversations with those who hold the festival. In this area, it is worth highlighting the mobilization for the Cururupu Ox Cart Encounter, among the cart drivers and with the communities. This has raised other issues such as the search for ratification as an Afro-descendant community, which is why the festival is permeated with symbols that correspond to this need, such as the Afro mass, where elements belonging to black culture are included in the religious liturgy; as well as all the cultural manifestations such as the Tambor de Crioula, the Afro fashion show, and the Bumba Boi de Costa de Mão (the original accent of this region). Léa Perez's and Lélia Gonzalez's notions of festivities, as well as the literature produced within the field of heritage anthropology, will be crucial to