Brazil

THE HISTORY OF the left in Brazil shows that it has changed its focus from the idea of republicanism to those of communism, socialism, and, finally, democracy. With the democratic election of Luís Inácio “Lula” da Silva as president in 2002, leftist politics became mainline in Brazil, albeit in a form that involved a series of compromises. This shows that left and right are variables in Brazilian politics, while the constant since 1822 is the politics of conciliation.

The left in Brazil has been the defender of civil rights, national identity, social-economic development and democracy, while opposing the political right. It can neither be reduced to political parties nor simply related to positions such as liberalism, Marxism, communism, or socialism or to leftist political groups such as anarchism, Trotskyism, modernism, and postmodernism. It is a movement looking to address the social changes in Brazilian history.

Brazil became a colony of Portugal in 1500. Independence came in 1882, but the country adopted a monarchic regime that lasted until 1889. During this time, Brazilian politics was bipartisan, with conservatives and liberals committing to the center, in what became [Page 52]known as the politics of conciliation. Although leftist movements arose during the 19th century and were involved in the struggles for independence, abolition of slavery, republicanism, and universal suffrage, their impact was felt much later. Only in the 20th century, after the Declaration of the Republic in 1889, can one better identify the left in Brazil.

Leftist groups were active in the 1920s, leading to the founding of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) in 1922, the movement for modern art, and the attempt at a communist rebellion by Antonio Carlos Prestes in 1929. The 1930s were rather marked by the hegemony of conservative movements blessed by the populist dictatorship of Getulio Vargas. After World War II, left intellectual movements began to discuss the modern national identity, culture, tensions between rural and urban life, and economic models for Brazil. However, with the military coup d'etat in 1964, Leftist social movements, student groups, political parties, and even guerrillas went underground.

The 1970s witnessed the impact of liberation theology and the Base Christian Communities, while the 1980s marked the founding of the Worker's Party, the growth of the women's movement, the intellectual role of universities, concern with human rights, widespread reaction against militarism, and the movement Diretas Já! (Presidential Elections Now!). The 1990s showed democracy at work, first with the impeachment of a populist president accused of corruption and then with the election of a social-democrat. All this led to the 21st century, which started with the election of a socialist president from the Worker's Party, thus giving a definitive leftist character to Brazilian politics and including newer themes in political debates, such as diversity, environmental issues, poverty, and social responsibility.

Marxist thinking has played a clear role in developing the left in Brazil. Intellectuals such as Caio Prado, Jr., Nelson Werneck Sodré, and Florestan Fernandes proposed a bourgeois revolution and dedicated several studies to Brazilian problems, using Marxism as an important tool for their analyses. Later on, programs of the Brazilian Institute of Higher Studies (ISEB) addressed the socioeconomic situation of the poor and the peasantry. Similar initiatives can be seen also in the Hunger Aesthetics (Estética da Fome) of Gláuber Rocha and Augusto Boal and others interested in the quest for national identity. A more applied approach of leftist thinking can be represented by the theories of economic development and dependency put forth by Celso Furtado and Fernando Henrique Cardoso, who analyzed the relation between center and periphery as a paradigm for the analysis of the Brazilian situation. A corollary of these analyses can be seen in the literacy program and the Pedagogy of the Oppressed of Paulo Freire.

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