The argument for a moderating power “above political disputes” that could step in in the name of the people to enact regime change began during imperial times and is still used as a justification for returning power to the royal family today. During the 1940s, this so-called “moderating role” was passed on to the Brasilian […]
Those of you that have been following me for a while know that I often write about the need for serenity in politics. I have said countless times that It is not acceptable to treat political opponents as enemies. I have pointed out that violence undermines the political debate. This posture has always come naturally […]
The depiction of Operation Lava Jato as an apolitical moral crusade, a new essentialist myth and a natural phase in the country’s development, is a divisive one in Brazil but nevertheless a narrative that Anglo media commentators have been almost unanimous in echoing. It is however becoming an increasingly difficult position to defend. The assertion that […]
As thousands of foreign media personnel parachute into Rio de Janeiro in the lead up to the upcoming Olympics, be prepared for an onslaught of what Pierre Bourdieu referred to as mind stopping cliches about Brasil and Rio de Janeiro. In many ways we can treat this as round two of the foreign media frenzy […]
The State Government of São Paulo’s planned closure of almost 100 schools provoked a campaign of resistance from pupils in the form of occupations and street mobilisations. This film is their protest in their own words.
Why is it that everything that happens in Brasil seems to be reported like an existential threat & why do foreign outlets so often get it so wrong? Here’s some examples from the past few years. (Ironically most of them received more media attention than the recent environmental catastrophe in Minas Gerais). 1. Carnaval is Cancelled Happens every […]
Brasil will not end, of course, but Lula’s style of reform will. And this will happen in a way that we don’t yet comprehend. – Sérgio Baierle Sérgio Baierle, 61, was a legendary activist during the heady days of the Olivio Dutra PT mayoral administration in Porto Alegre during the 1990s, when it became one of […]
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“Brazil: Social Change from Import-Substitution to Neoliberalism and the ‘Events of June’” By Alfredo Saad Filho originally published at nuvole.it Introduction [1] Large demonstrations erupted unexpectedly in Brazil in June 2013. The wave of protests lasted until mid-July, and it involved well over one million people in several hundred cities. At an immediate level, the […]
After the lowest turn out yet for a pro-impeachment protest last Sunday, hundreds of thousands of social movement and labour union members took to the streets wednesday 16/12 in at least 23 states to protest what they call a Coup attempt against President Dilma Rousseff. In São Paulo, where Brasil Wire witnessed at least 5 blocks […]