Indigenous leader Sonia Guajajara (L) and Lula da Silva (R), Brasilia, Brazil, April 12, 2022. PHOTO: Twitter/ @GuajajaraSonia
The midterm elections are coming up in the United States amd its hard not to have a sense of dread here in Canada. It seems as though democracy died in the States in 2016 when the Ghoulish Orange Menace was elected and Trumpism is jumping out and yelling boo once again. Why does the comment by the late, great Robin Williams' that being Canadian must seem like living in a nice apartment above a meth lab come to mind? Ya, we have a bunch of problems of our own here in Canada.
Today I'm much more interested in the outcome of the election in Brazil where it appears that the autocratic Trump wannabe, president Jair Bolsanaro, has been defeated by former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In political terms Lula, as he's known, has risen from the dead. His reelection by the narrowest of margins brings hope for Brazil's vast Amazonian rainforest. Under Bolsanaro most protections were lifted and Indigenous resisters to development were regularly murdered.
Throughout Bolsanararo's term of office the Roman Catholic bishops of Brazil decried the destruction of the rainforest and the persecution of Indigenous peoples. Earlier this year they issued a statement that the Roman Catholic church would refuse “financial support, either in cash or in other goods, from politicians, logging companies, mining companies … that contribute to deforestation and to the expulsion of Indigenous peoples, “quilombolas” (descendants of escaped African slaves), riverside communities, and small farmers from their lands.”
This has been a courageous stance given the violence leveled against opposition.
Bolsanaro was endorsed by former US president Trump and we can only hope and pray that he doesn't follow the Trump script of refusing to concede power. It's been suggested that the world's lungs breathed a sigh of relief when Lula won the election. In his first speech as president-elect he said: “Let’s fight for zero deforestation. Brazil is ready to resume its leading role in the fight against the climate crisis, protecting all our biomes, especially the Amazon Forest.”
I'm still holding my breath, figuratively speaking, until the transition of power.
2 comments:
Yes, the former U.S. president's influence has been deeply damaging within the U.S. and abroad. He has made what was unthinkable in American politics, acceptable. Bolsonaro the "Trump of the Tropics" will make a statement/speech Tuesday. Can you imagine the chaos if he won't concede? Some of his supporters have already called for a coup....sounds familiar (January 6.) KB
Bolsanaro has huge support from truck drivers, apparently. Go figure. So much uncertainty rooted in xenophobia, greed, and outright hatred in our world today. I shudder to imagine what will unfold as the effects of climate change deepen. Thanks Kathy.
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