The Hope of A Comeback of Democracy in Brazil
The victory of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is a victory against fascism
By Justina Poskeviciute
As the second round of Brazilian presidential election was coming up, we all held our breath.
Would the country stay on the path of extreme right represented by Jair Bolsonaro or would it say it has had enough of his divisive, hateful, and violent policies?
Luckily, albeit with a small margin, Lula won.
As he himself said in his victory speech, the Brazilian people have chosen not him, but a specific vision of a country they want to be part of:
This is not a victory for me or for the PT (Workers Party), it is a social movement that has been formed over the politicians so that democracy could win. The majority said they want more democracy and not less, more social inclusion and not less, more respect and understanding, and not less; they are asking for more freedom, fraternity, and equality in our country.
One quick article couldn’t summarize what a phenomenon Lula is as a political leader, how unlikely his road to the Brazilian presidency has been, and what injustice he had to suffer in the past years.
But he is not looking into the past.
He is looking into the future.
We celebrate Lula’s comeback to power as a leader who has proven himself to care for the Brazilian people, and not just its elite.
We hope the transition of power in Brazil goes peacefully and Jair Bolsonaro doesn’t encourage his supporters to keep on blocking the roads and trying to disrupt the very functioning of the country.
What Brazil needs is healing, peace, and bridging the hateful divisions that, unfortunately, need a lot of work.
”There are no Brazils”, Lula continued in his victory speech. “We are one people, one nation.”
Justina Poskeviciute is CODEPINK’S Engagement Manager and a freelance political commentator. You can also find her on Twitter and Spotify. Among other places, she has lived in Brazil and writes about Latin American politics.