Lutar sempre, temer jamais
From teleSUR English on Facebook:
Women are rising up against the sexist coup government in Brazil! Tens of thousands of, mostly, women took to the streets in at least 5 major cities across Brazil to express outrage over the coup government of Michel Temer that announced very sexist and neoliberal plans after ousting the left-wing female President Dilma Rousseff.
Led by women student groups, feminist organizations and trade unions, people of all age groups and ethnicities in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, San Salvador, Belo Horizonte, and Porto Alegre blocked traffic and shouted slogans including “Temer coup-monger” and “Out with Temer” against the newly-installed conservative leader.
In the very first hours after being installed, the new coup government swore in 22 cabinet minister, all of them white and male, the first time since the 1970s that no women have been in the cabinet. Rousseff had 15 female minister during her government.
Also the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Women, Racial Equality and Human Rights were shut down, in a country that is dealing with severe problems of sexism, racism and human rights violations.
Protester Gabriella: “This is the answer to the government, who tries to tear up our constitution and propose such a giant step backwards for women, minorities and social programs. And it’s only the beginning. We say: no step back!”
Protester Raissa: “The most chauvinistic government since the military dictatorship will feel the power of women. We will not shut up. We will not bow down. If they thought they buried us, they were wrong. We are seeds that will be giving fruit for the entire country. Today we occupy the streets, tomorrow we take back the government.”
I like the sign prominent in the last 3 photos:
“lugar de mulher é na revolução”
It reads
“A woman’s place is in the revolution”
:-)
Incidentally, I notice in the last few days there have been posts about women’s rights in Brazil, Central African Republic, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Germany as well as the US and UK.
Bloody White Feminists, eh? They’re so busy lunching and complaining about men holding doors open for them that they never spare a thought for other women around the world.
(/sarcasm)
;-)
I have an online friend who lives in Brazil, and has been talking about the situation there.
He acknowledges the foulness of the current regime, but he also points out that the prior (liberal) administration were essentially kleptocrats of the highest order. By tolerating that corruption, the left-wing parties managed to create the opening for the right to seize power.
Why the silence in the media about this? There have been many articles published about Dilma Rousseff’s ouster, but nothing about the reactions to it. Had no idea this was happening.
The best thing here is that there’s nearly three months for this to develop into a good old-fashioned South American civil war, just in time for the Summer Olympics! 👍
Yes, I didn’t know it was happening either, which is why I posted it. Social media can be useful. (For another example, Peter Walker has been a terrific source for the Malheur invasion and related local news.)
I did see one story on this in the Chicago Tribune. (They do their foreign/national reporting through the LA Times, which is why this link is to there.)
http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-brazil-impeach-diversity-20160513-snap-story.html
#2
Clearly, White Feminists weren’t involved in this – or else the people would have to give up ‘White Feminist’ as a pejorative, and we can’t have that.