The streets speak: what motivates protests in Brazil and around the world – 02/23/2024 – Deborah Bizarria

Following the demonstration called by Jair Bolsonaro (PL) for this Sunday (25), on Avenida Paulista, I realized that politicians and social leaders have managed to bring more and more people to the streets. Over the past decade, Brazil has witnessed an increase in the number and scale of protests. Since 2013, we have seen student movements, strikes and protests against and in favor of the current rulers or around other prominent political figures.

This panorama is not exclusive to Brazil, as pointed out in the study by Davide Cantoni and other authors, which included assistance from Brazilian researcher William Radaic. The research analyzed data on 1.2 million protest events in 218 countries, covering a period from 1980 to 2020. This volume of information not only highlights its ubiquity as a global phenomenon but also points to the complexity of its causes and consequences. Through statistical analysis and examination of existing literature, they uncovered the patterns underlying the acts, exploring temporal trends, geographic patterns and the relationship with economic and social variables.

The results revealed significant empirical patterns that, together, provide a deeper understanding of protests not only in Brazil but around the world. Firstly, there was a change of course during the Arab Spring, a period where both democracies and authoritarian regimes experienced an increase in movements.

It was observed that major political events can catalyze waves of protest that, through social media, go beyond national borders and reshape the political scenario in other locations.

This highlights the “contagious” nature of protests, whereby action in one country can inspire similar movements in others, highlighting the global interconnectedness of social and political causes.

Economy x Values

Contrary to common intuition, the results showed that a country’s economic performance is not directly linked to the frequency of demonstrations. Instead, it is individual values ​​that most influence the decision of whether or not to join this type of event.

This finding reinforces the idea that motivations to protest go beyond mere economic dissatisfaction, encompassing a wider range of ideological and cultural factors related to individual identity.

In this sense, we can reflect on how Brazil fits into this global context of protests. Although we know that economic factors may have influenced some acts, especially “Fora Dilma”, it is worth paying attention to the weight of values ​​and the sense of belonging, as reported in the research.

The appeal of charismatic figures, such as Jair Bolsonaro himself, is due to their connection with people who do not feel represented by current institutions based on certain principles. The question remains: how can we meet part of these values ​​without falling into an anti-democratic trap?

Looking at foreign experiences and evidence can help in building solutions.

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