The
Global South is growing unintelligible from the European South amid
harsh austerity measures and other maneuverings that suit the rich
and powerful at the expense of the poor and working class.
by
Michael Nevradakis
Part
5 - How have Brazilians responded?
The
spotlight of the international media was thrust upon Brazil in 2013
and again prior to Rousseff’s impeachment in 2016, when protests
sprung up in the streets—which may have been fueled, at least in
part, by Koch-funded and wealthy elements in Brazilian society.
With
a regime in place which may not be supported by the majority of
Brazil’s population but is very much supported by the global
banking and business elite and by Washington, protests against
Temer’s government have not been afforded the same level of
coverage, perhaps giving the impression that the Brazilian populace
has resigned itself to a tacit acceptance of the new regime. Reality,
however, seems to be a bit more nuanced.
There
have been both strikes and protests on a fairly wide scale in Brazil
since Temer’s takeover, including protests which erupted following
the enactment of the 20-year public spending freeze, further
significant protests against the Temer government on Brazil’s
Independence Day, and a strike of workers at oil refineries all
across the country at the end of the year.
These
movements are accompanied by abysmal approval ratings for the new
government in multiple public opinion surveys, even if approval
ratings and poll numbers are often meaningless or inaccurate. Just
look at the low approval ratings and exceptionally high re-election
ratings for members of the U.S. Congress, for instance, or the
multiple polls which all but assured a Hillary Clinton victory in the
U.S. presidential elections, or the public opinion polls in Greece
which have repeatedly been not just grossly inaccurate but always in
a pro-austerity direction. For instance, Greek polling firms
predicted a neck-and-neck referendum result in July 2015, when in
fact, the “no” vote rejecting the European Union’s proposed
austerity package received an overwhelming 62 percent of the vote.
Despite
the protests that have taken place ever since Temer took over in
Brazil, Kat Moreno points out the factors that have prevented them
from being more widespread or long-lived.
According
to Moreno, some strata of society do not feel safe in taking to the
streets, and Moreno cites fear as a “strong variable” to consider
when examining responses to the political situation in the country,
as a result of the high degree of police repression and brutality,
which has been especially evident during protests of left-wing groups
and protesters who are not affiliated with any major organization or
party.
Such
a situation could also be said to foster “protest fatigue,” which
is often seen as a factor in the lack of wide-scale protest in Greece
and other crisis-stricken countries of the European South in recent
years. Following large-scale protests seen in the 2010-2012 period,
which peaked with the movement of the “Indignants” in Spain and
Greece in the spring and summer of 2011 and which were eventually met
by a violent and heavy-handed police response, protests have largely
disappeared or been confined to ephemeral and single-issue efforts
without longevity.
In
Greece, a common response to questions as to why Greeks no longer
take to the streets is that protesters will simply get tear gassed
again and sent back home. The “shock doctrine” described by Naomi
Klein may also serve as another psychological factor: When protests
turn out to be fruitless and unpopular policies are rammed through
despite opposition, feelings of discouragement and despair become
more prevalent and serve as obstacles to further action.
To
some extent, Brazilian society may be experiencing some of these
symptoms.
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