Encuentro Debate #1: Resisting Bolsonaro. Debate on human, environmental and labor rights in Brazil.
Watch the full debate on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjD_HxtZ9wE&t=3s&fbclid=IwAR1XbUcp-MDQ1w...
In collaboration with Maison d'Amerique Latine.
In 1964, Brazilian democracy collapsed as tanks rolled into Rio de Janeiro to overthrow reformist president João Goulart. Five decades later, not the military forces but the ballot-box announces a return to reactionary politics. In 2018, Brazilians elected Jair Bolsonaro in a vicious electoral process which combined the massive sharing of pre-paid fake news, politically motivated militia-like violence and an obscure lack of debate on Bolsonaro’s policies for the country. Bolsonaro’s far-right populist platform, upheld by racist, sexist and homophobic statements, praised the military dictatorship and promised a political “cleansing never seen before in Brazil”. Although political support for Bolsonaro was widespread, it was strongest among white, upper middle class, elite and evangelic sectors of society. Both his alliances with agribusiness, big finance and the armed forces as well as his appointed cabinet members, announce a presidential term build on the deregulation of the labor market, hostility towards indigenous and social movements on women’s rights and gender justice and an intensification of environmental destruction. The rhetoric and first policies of Bolsonaro raise many questions about the future of a poverty-stricken, racially divided, increasingly evangelic, and now more than never, ideologically polarized Brazil.
In this first of a series om monthly Encuentro debates, a diverse panel of speakers will dissect what Bolsonaro’s victory means for Brazil’s historically most marginalized groups. Which backlash can we expect against the poor, LGBTQ people and afro and indigenous sectors of society who have historically suffered most under violence and oppression? How can we, as Europeans, stand in solidarity with these targeted groups? What can we learn from the parallels between the ‘new right’ in Brazil and the rise of the far-right in Europe and Belgium specifically? Which European sectors are likely to benefit from Bolsonaro’s government and how can we keep them accountable? And most importantly, what’s the way forward for Brazil and how can resistance limit the damaging effects of Bolsonaro’s presidency on the country’s vulnerable groups and precarious institutions?
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WHERE: Maison d'Amerique Latine (Rue du Collège 21, 1050 Elsene)
WHEN: 21st of February 2016, 19:30 - 21:30
ENTRANCE FREE, REGISTRATION REQUIRED
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PANEL MEMBERS:
Allan Souza Queiroz is a PhD Candidate and teacher assistant in Sociology, Ghent University. His research focuses on precarious work and employment in Brazil’s sugarcane plantations.
Juliana Santos Wahlgren studied Law and Political Science. She works at the European Network Against Racism as an Advocacy Strategist in the field of migration and integration and community mobilization. She also provides legal support as a volunteer to Brazilian victims of domestic violence in Belgium.
Paulo Lugon Arantes is an international jurist and a PhD Candidate at KU Leuven. In the last decade, he has worked intensively for the Human Rights Council in Geneva, as an adviser, researcher and NGO activist.
Fernando Burgés studied Political Science and International Relations. He is the manager of Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), an international, non-violent and democratic organization dedicated to the defense of indigenous peoples, minorities, unrecognized states and occupied territories, the preservation of their environment and promotion of their right to self-determination
Ana Cristina Suzina holds a PhD in Political and Social Sciences, studying the participation in the Brazilian democracy through popular media initiatives. She is a journalist with more than 15 years of experience in the field of communication for social change, mainly in the fields of human rights and nature conservation. She is currently attached to the research groups SMAG – Social Movements in the Global Age – at the Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium) and COMUNI – Núcleo de Estudos de Comunicação Comunitária e Mídia Local – at the Universidade Anhembi Morumbi (Brazil).
Ana Luiza Morais Hannotte is an activist of Human Rights and Masters student in International Relations at ULB. She integrates the Women's Resistance Movement (Mulheres da Resistência no Exterior) and has organized the first manifestations in Belgium against Bolsonaro's election
Moderator: Marília Breite is a social media expert and influencer. She has a degree in Political sciences and In Communication studies. She is the author of the blog Papel com Clips and is a media facilitator in several hackaton events in Belgium.