Brazil’s Own January 6th
Story by Marcellus Peters-Jackson. Photo courtesy of USIP.
On January 8th, the Brazilian capital of Brasilia experienced an attempted insurrection. This comes seven days after Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was sworn in as the 39th President of Brazil on January 1, 2023, after defeating former President Jair Bolsonaro in a run-off election in October of 2022. The riots were violent, with multiple pieces of artworks destroyed and or stolen.
The mobs ran through Congress, the Supreme Court, and other presidential offices, smashing everything they could. These mobbers were outraged at the fact that their candidate, Bolsonaro, lost the run-off election in October. They believe that elections can be rigged by hackers and the congress that reviews them, something Bolsanaro himself has told them for years.
This insurrection is eerily similar to the one Americans experience in Washington, D.C. on January 6. Bolsonistas and Trumpers are two groups that have many similarities. Both attempted an insurrection due to an apparently unfaithful vote. They also both were essentially instigated into these actions by a specific candidate who they view as their leader. When the elections were lost, they grew outraged, and rioted the capitals of their governments.
And where was Bolsonaro during all of this? He left Brazil two days before the inauguration of his successor and went to Florida, where he still is today. Multiple U.S. advisors and the government agree that Bolsonaro should be returned to Brazil instead of being given custody in Florida. Even U.S. Congress member Joaquin Castro disagrees with the U.S. giving “an authoritarian who has inspired domestic terrorism” custody. Other countries, such as Canada and Mexico, condemn the attacks on the Brazilian government.
While Bolsonaro rests in Florida, his supporters don’t. Camps in Brazil are still being found, and people in these raider’s camps are still being arrested.
Marcellus Peters-Jackson is an 8th grade scholar at Friendship Woodridge International School.