Version imprimableIn the area of political representation, Republican President Donald Trump in the United States is an expression of the advance of conservatism and all forms of hatred against humanity. In Brazil, the candidacy of Jair Bolsonaro, from the Liberal Social Party, for the presidency of the Republic is the Brazilian version of the racist, macho and homophobic politician. Trump reached 53% rejection among the US electorate on the eve of the US elections.
Bolsonaro achieved 46% vote rejection one week before the Brazilian elections. The fact is that unlike Trump, Bolsonaro will have more difficulty getting elected, because in our electoral system "will defeat the one who wins more votes". The Brazilian ultra-right candidate will have to face, above all, the anger of Brazilian women who have organized themselves on a large scale in social networks. On Saturday 29, the #womenagainstbolsonaro movement or the #nothim movement, gathered 4 million people in the main streets of Brazilian cities and the interior of the country and in more than 30 demonstrations convened, on 4 continents, to shout #nothim #neverhim.
If the public manifestations of hatred by this candidate and anti-PTism win supporters, on the other hand, the number of those who refuse his hate speech against the majority of Brazilians (women, blacks, LGBTs, the poor) is also increasing. Since the huge mobilizations of June 2013, we have not seen such massive demonstrations in defence of democracy, the expression of the crisis of Brazilian political representation, with a decisive role for youth and women, reinforced by the coup d’état that brought down President Dilma Rousseff of the Workers’ Party.
Brazilian women have demonstrated solidarity and political understanding, linked to the demands of the current economic situation. They have built a front characterized by the support of women’s groups increasingly able to join the call #not him! The format and methods of last Saturday’s mobilizations demonstrated the power of horizontality and immediate engagement without "dirigisms", without instrumentalizing the common struggle, the unity of women against fascism.
The diversity of trajectories and positions of social movements, political parties and presidential candidates were visible in the mobilizations with their colours, flags. At the heart of the election campaign, women managed to bring together millions of Brazilians without transforming their struggle against oppression into a major electoral rally. Our unitary line was summed up as chasing Bolsonaro and everything he represents.
Bolsonaro supporters tried to mobilize propaganda actions the next day in response to the "women against Bolsonaro." The result was a resounding failure, followed by a host of misogynistic, homophobic and anti-working class statements by one of the main leaders of his campaign, his son Eduardo Bolsonaro. "Women on the right are more beautiful than those on the left; they do not expose their breasts in the street and do not defecate to protest," says this mediocre character childishly. And he adds: "women on the right are more hygienic than women on the left" statements that contrast with "we are women, resistance for a Brazil without fascism and without horror", sung with strength by all of us the day before.
There are some lessons to be learned from this Saturday: women have developed the ability to dream and restore hope in Brazil. Resignation and hate vote will have to face a campaign of "Women United Against Bolsonaro" in this final phase of the Brazilian elections: any hesitation, blank or null vote, will be a challenge for the choice of any candidate except Bolsonaro. All our efforts are focused on confirming the trends of the pre-election polls: Bolsonaro loses against any candidate in the second round.
On Sunday, October 7, Brazilian men and women will have to vote for the next president. A new national convocation will announce new mobilizations throughout the country, alongside all expressions of international solidarity with the Brazilian people. It will be broadcast, it will call on the people to defeat Bolsonaro in the second round, removing the threat to the lives of women, indigenous peoples, homosexuals, blacks and blacks, the roofless, the landless, the unemployed, youth, workers. If elections depend on women in the polls: #EleNão #Neverhim. Women against Bolsonaro, will also be in the second round.
