Thread by @docrussjackson

#THREAD

This is a story that starts around 2018, when Jair Bolsonaro – then a lacklustre congressman known for supporting the military dictatorship and publicly praising notorious torturers – launched his presidential candidacy.

theconversation.com/brazil-insurre…

Like so many far-right authoritarians before him, in the name of God, the fatherland and traditional family values, the retired army captain Bolsonarao echoed Trump's banal slogan by vowing to “drain the swamp” of politics and usher in a new era for Brazil.

In Bolsonaro's vision, state policies would no longer be necessary. Political authority would naturally stem from business people, religious leaders, armed militiamen and – above all – the president’s messianic figure.

This combination of authoritarian populism and social Darwinism is not new. It lies at the foundations of far-right movements that have gained momentum worldwide in recent years. And it sheds light on the Bolsonarist phenomenon, helping us make sense of Brazil’s “black Sunday”.

Bolsonarism is a profoundly anti-democratic movement that conflates elements of the US far-right – most notably Trumpism – and Brazil’s long history of social inequality and militarism into a whole new digital language.

Reminiscent of Brexit & the Cambridge Analytica scandal, WhatsApp and social media like @Twitter have been key to attracting supporters that have become increasingly suspicious of the political system over the previous decade.

In Brazil, this popular disillusionment among certain groups has been mostly due to corruption scandals, growing urban violence and to policies under the then – and now again – president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, that favoured Brazil’s poorest.

In his path to the presidency, Bolsonaro was able to tap into people’s emotions. He brought millions of Brazilians together by mobilising elements of hatred, fear and resentment, and offered them something to fight against – namely, communism.

Echoing the Nazism. from the start of his tenure, Bolsonaro moved decisively to undermine Brazil’s democratic institutions and state capacity on the grounds that he was 'saving the country from communism'.

By pitting his supporters against imaginary enemies he could successfully dodge accusations of incompetence, corruption – and even crimes against public health during the COVID pandemic which killed nearly 700,000 Brazilians.

Again, echoing the Nazis, the Bolsonaro administration’s survival might be down to the loyal support of a coalition of business people, the farming lobby, evangelical leaders and members of the armed and security forces.

A key element of his governing strategy was - just like the Trump, May, Truss, & Johnson administrations - to attack whoever spoke against the interests of these groups: the supreme court, congress, and the mainstream media among his favourite targets.

Bolsonaro’s sect of fanatical supporters seem to want Brazil’s far-right president to be the country’s absolute ruler even without the need for elections, following a distorted interpretation of the constitution.

Just like Trump, in October 2022, anticipating defeat, Bolsonaro spent months sowing suspicion over the voting machines & questioning the integrity of the electoral process. Like Trump, Bolsonaro’s narrow loss was enough for him to refuse to concede.

Bolsonaro’s silence for the two months between elections & Lula’s inauguration appears to have served as a nod & a wink to rally his supporters, who blocked roads, threatened political opponents & built camps in front of army barracks, while calling for military intervention.

Days before the inauguration, Bolsonaro fled the country, to Florida, suggesting that his life was at risk in Brazil. His supporters seem to have interpreted this as a call to action. It was just a matter of time before the Brazilian version of the US January 6 riot took place.

It was shocking to see police officers relaxing while protesters stormed into Brasília’s main public buildings. Army soldiers who should have been securing the presidential palace did nothing as criminals destroyed or stole works of art, furniture & government documents.

Lula issued a decree establishing a federal military intervention in Brasília to stop the chaos, resulting in the arrest of over 1,500 rioters. There is also unprecedented coordination between executive and judiciary branches to investigate who is behind the attacks on democracy.

It is now crucial to identify & clamp down on the members of this violent far-right network - not only those who invaded the buildings, but also those who funded them, who incited the protests, & who created narratives responsible for the coup-mongering.

bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-…

If Lula’s mission is to bring the country together again, his administration must ensure that Brazil will no longer serve as a laboratory for extremist tactics & ideologies as it did over the past few years.

Bolsonaro, meanwhile, remains in Florida.

theguardian.com/world/2023/jan…

Bolsonaro may have distanced himself from the storming of the government buildings. But now the discussion will focus on whether – and when – he will return to Brazil and, if he does, whether he will face charges of inciting insurrection.

#GlobalFascism