Through decades of military dictatorship, hyperinflation and economic crises, football has always been a uniting force in Brazil. But the “bus fare” protests sweeping through the country this week have strained even football’s ability to knit the country together.
It would have been almost unthinkable just two weeks ago that Brazilians would publicly deride Pelé, regarded by his countrymen as a national hero and the greatest player in the sport’s history. But his statement that people should “forget all of this mayhem that’s happening in Brazil, all of these protests” was greeted with accusations that the 73-year-old “King of Football” was out of touch with his countrymen.
The scorn with which so many Brazilians greeted the remark was just one sign of the depth of national support for the street protests that have spread though more than 80 cities, from the Amazon in the north to Porto Alegre in the south.
So fast and unexpected has been the emergence of the biggest street protest movement in Brazil since the impeachment of President Fernando Collor in 1992, and so diffuse are its demands, that it has caught the nation’s politicians flat-footed.
What started 10 days ago as a protest against a minor increase in public transport fares in São Paulo has grown into a mass cry of national frustration. They are railing against everything from corruption and overspending on the 2014 football World Cup to attempts by evangelists in Congress to pass a bill to “cure” homosexuality. Full story...
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It would have been almost unthinkable just two weeks ago that Brazilians would publicly deride Pelé, regarded by his countrymen as a national hero and the greatest player in the sport’s history. But his statement that people should “forget all of this mayhem that’s happening in Brazil, all of these protests” was greeted with accusations that the 73-year-old “King of Football” was out of touch with his countrymen.
The scorn with which so many Brazilians greeted the remark was just one sign of the depth of national support for the street protests that have spread though more than 80 cities, from the Amazon in the north to Porto Alegre in the south.
So fast and unexpected has been the emergence of the biggest street protest movement in Brazil since the impeachment of President Fernando Collor in 1992, and so diffuse are its demands, that it has caught the nation’s politicians flat-footed.
What started 10 days ago as a protest against a minor increase in public transport fares in São Paulo has grown into a mass cry of national frustration. They are railing against everything from corruption and overspending on the 2014 football World Cup to attempts by evangelists in Congress to pass a bill to “cure” homosexuality. Full story...
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- Brazil is saying what we could not: we don't want these costly extravaganzas...
- No, I'm not going to the World Cup...
- Protesters flood Brazilian cities over World Cup spending...
- In Brazil, the mask of democracy is falling...
- Biggest protests in 20 years sweep Brazil...
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