On January 8th, two years and two days after the right-wing January 6 coup at the Capitol in D.C., a mob of Bolsonaro supporters stormed government buildings and and the presidential home in Brazil’s capital, Brasília. The violent infiltration was motivated by the rioters’ opposition to current left-wing president Lula da Silva, who was inaugurated at the beginning of the year and campaigned on fighting social and economic inequality. Some of Bolsonaro’s backers have accused Lula of election fraud, and as per CNN reporting, had been preparing for the coup attempt by camping in the capital since the announcement of Bolsonaro’s loss in the election. By acts of violence, fearmongering, and destruction, they made it clear that Lula’s return to the presidency will be met with resistance from a fascist right emboldened by years of power.
It’s an opportunity to think about the similarities in ideology and tactics between American Trumpism and Brazilian Bolsonarismo after election losses — and how the Lula and Biden governments (with their own vast political differences) handled right-wing attacks. Who can forget the surreal (if not totally surprising) experience of watching law enforcement stand by and allow right-wingers to invade the Capitol? While Lula has called out the Federal District’s military police for their failure to act, his government has also removed right-wing public officials responsible for upholding public safety, and hundreds of arrests have been made. Cognizant of the fascist threat to his democratic and leftist program, Lula’s administration is taking action against right-wing hostility in the week after his inauguration.
We hope you’ll join us for this week’s KK&F conversation. Paying subscribers can watch the video of our discussion this Friday, while the audio will be available to everyone via Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more on Saturday. See you soon.
Thumbnail image from CNN, “Déjà coup: How election lies sparked the violent attack on Brazil's government.”
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