Video – Fascism at the Gates: Bolsonaro and the Brazillian Elections

https://www.facebook.com/BRRNfed/videos/vb.1583450778540915/2160408730869417/?type=2&theater

 

The following Facebook live stream was recorded at the event “Fascism at the Gates: Bolsonaro and the Brazillian Elections” at Interference Archive on October 20, 2018 hosted by Black Rose/Rosa Negra – NYC. Please note that the audio quality in the opening of the video has some issues but improves 

The past few years in Brazil have been marked by intense political turbulence. In 2013 there were massive protests throughout the country demonstrating clear popular dissatisfaction with the political situation, cases of corruption involving most of the Brazilian parties, and President Dilma Roussef was impeached from office  in a “parliamentary coup” replaced by the right-wing neo-liberal Vice President, Michel Temer, who one of the least popular presidents in Brazilian history.

Now, in 2018, there is a new electoral period marked by a strong polarity between left (and center-left) and right (and far right), with a frightening factor — the candidacy of Jair Bolsonaro, an explicit supporter of dictatorship who is known for his flippant and nakedly racist, homophobic and sexist statements. Bolsonaro is interpreted by political, academic and media groups all over the world as an actual fascist and almost without precedent in the twenty-first century. Currently leading major polls, Bolsonaro stands to win in the second round of elections on October 28.

Anarchist groups in Brazil, invited by Black Rose/Rosa Negra Anarchist Federation, will present their analyze on the political moment from a libertarian socialist perspective, and discuss strategies for fighting back.

Participants:

Zenite is a Brazilian anarchist, engaged in the squatting movement, and an editor and contributor to Facção Fictícia and Crimethinc.

Victor Fernandes is a Brazilian anarchist, engaged in housing movements among others mass movements, and a researcher at the Observatory on Innovation, Citizenship and TechnoScience. He is also a environmental studies researcher and PhD candidate at UFMG (Federal University of Minas Gerais).

Cí Melo is a Brazilian anarchist and current member of Black Rose Anarchist Federation in New York City. She is engaged in housing, transportation as well as feminist groups, and is a contributor to El Coyote publication.


For more on the current political situation in Brazil we recommend the following articles: “The Claws of Empire, the Rise of Fascism: Brazilian Anarchist Statement on Bolsonaro,” “Dispatch on Brazil: Interview with Hugo Souza,” and “Brazil: Interview on the Assassination of Marielle Franco.”