Movimento Sem Terra

The Brazilian Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST), or Landless Rural Workers Movement, is the most influential landless peasant movement in contemporary Latin America. The MST is a unique, family-based movement committed to the radical transformation of Brazil's unjust agrarian structure. Its current membership numbers more than 1.5 million people spread across 23 Brazilian states. The MST was established in 1984 in the city of Cascavel, in the southern state of Paraná, with the purpose of advancing land reform through the occupation of idle private and public lands. Since its inception, the MST has been led by João Pedro Stédile, a highly charismatic and effective peasant leader from the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Under his leadership, the MST has spearheaded a slow ...