Approximately two hours after the end of the event in São Paulo – scheduled for the reading of the letter in defense of democracy and defense of electronic voting machines, Bolsonaro used the social network to make light of the demonstration. “Today, a very important act took place in favor of Brazil and of great relevance for the Brazilian people: Petrobras once again reduced the price of diesel,” he wrote.
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Letter to Brazilians
The text read, which was signed by more than 960 thousand people, does not mention Bolsonaro's name at any point. According to the creators of the manifesto, this occurred to give a non-partisan tone to the movement. However, the speakers and the public present, on several occasions, made explicit statements to the president. Shortly before the end of the ceremony, shouts of “Out, Bolsonaro” were sung by people.
The letter for democracy was read together by three USP professors and a lawyer, at the headquarters of the traditional law school in Largo de São Francisco, in São Paulo. Among the women was Eunice Aparecida de Jesus Prudente, author of the first test proposing the criminalization of racial discrimination, in the 1980s.
“I use very important symbols of communities and religions of African origin. I’m dressed in yellow, one of the colors of Saint Oxum”, commented Eunice.
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At the event, in addition to the letter from the Faculty of Law at USP, the pro-democracy manifesto prepared by the Federation of Industry of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp) was also read. BBC News Brasil explains the difference between them.
Post-event repercussions
During a conversation with journalists to comment on the results achieved in the second quarter of 2022, the president of Banco do Brasil, Fausto Ribeiro, criticized the adherence of the Brazilian Federation of Banks (Febraban) to the manifesto in defense of democracy.
It is worth remembering that names like Roberto Setubal and Pedro Moreira Salles, co-presidents of the Board of Directors of Itaú Unibanco, are among those who signed the letter.
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The Bolsonaro deputy, Coronel Tadeu, attended the event wearing a white shirt with Bolsonaro's name on it. To the press, he said that he was not harassed at any time by the people participating in the event.
According to a monitoring carried out by Estadão, the hashtag “Bolsonaro Leaves, Democracy Stays” was in first place on Twitter shortly before the letter was read.
In response, the president's supporters uploaded the hashtag “É Jair ou Já Era” this afternoon. Until the publication of this report, it ranked first among the most talked about topics in the country.
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Curto curation
- Understand why August 11th is a symbolic date for reading letters and acts for democracy (G1).
- Ten lines that summarize the event at USP (UOL).
- Bolsonaro supporter interrupts reading of the letter at USP in Ribeirão Preto (CBN Radio).
Featured photo: Rovena Rosa/Agência Brasil
