The three ‘Ds’ of the formation of Brazil: Dictatorship, Inequality and Contempt – 09/20/2023 – Jorge Abrahão

The title is the Brazilian counterpoint to the motto of the French Revolution: freedom, equality and fraternity. In Brazil we did almost everything in reverse. In the same period we lived more in exception than in freedom; we built one of the most unequal nations in the world; and we do despise the majority of the population, relegating them to exclusion and poverty.

The few times we have reached a democratic oasis, deserts of authoritarianism have emerged, caused by armed coups or planted with a veneer of legality, deceiving a large part of society. We are, therefore, not proudly, the antithesis of the motto of the French Revolution.

One of the concrete results of these long periods under authoritarian regimes is the enormous inequality and social exclusion given to freedom, not to mention the shamelessness, with which most politicians operate in defense of private interests, disregarding the public interest. And the worst thing is that, even under democracy, powerful economic groups found a way to make their interests prevail. The center’s cluster in the National Congress is unequivocal proof: they act for the private interests of those who financed them. The promiscuous relationship between economic power and political power is the cause of our failure as a nation.

But, as civil society is proactive and does not conform, dozens of entities recently came together to launch the National Pact to Combat Inequalities, with the creation of a Parliamentary Front, an Observatory of Inequalities and with the proposal to make August is the month of careful observation and monitoring of inequality in the country.

During the launch of the pact, the Sustainable Cities Institute presented a survey carried out by Ipec that reveals the population’s perception of inequality in the country. The survey showed that 31% of Brazilian men and women needed to do some extra activity (side job) to supplement their income in the last year, which is equivalent to 52 million people; the majority of the population (57%) continues to feel that there has been an increase in the number of people facing hunger and poverty in the city where they live; 68% believe that there is a difference in treatment between black and white people in different environments (shopping malls and schools are the most cited places); and 40% of women say they have suffered harassment (public spaces and public transport are the most cited).

At another point during the pact’s launch event, institutions were provoked to answer how, in practice, they could act to contribute to combating inequalities in their segments.

The eight union centrals, together, presented their 10 proposals to combat inequalities from the perspective of work, such as: maintaining the National Minimum Wage Valorization Policy, aiming to increase the base salary (national floor) of the economy, and including clauses with rules and policies that ensure the principle of “equal work, equal pay” for women, the black population and people with disabilities.

The Ethos Institute brought 10 proposals for companies to combat inequalities, such as: promoting decent work and generating opportunities and fair income; promote diversity, equity and inclusion; and promote climate justice. And the Sustainable Cities Institute presented how cities can tackle inequalities, including:

– Prepare the Map of Inequalities: a diagnosis of inequalities in the territory;

– Create indices for directing municipal investments to priority areas of the city, based on socioeconomic and territorial vulnerability criteria;

– Create instances of social participation with the capacity to monitor goals and indicators for reducing inequalities;

– Recognize initiatives from public authorities, civil society and companies to reduce inequalities;

– Approve legislation that establishes the assessment, by the Constitution and Justice Committee (CCJ) of the City Council, of the impact of bills on reducing inequalities, making it mandatory for all legislative proposals, in accordance with article 3 of the Constitution ;

Contrary to what many people claim, Brazil has its efficiencies. In the case of promoting inequalities, it is a reference in the world. Inequality is the result of public policies that benefit few and exclude many — and in this we are unbeatable. In a few decades, we became this example in reverse.

Tackling inequalities in Brazil requires the involvement of several segments. Public management can provide scale and speed in tackling this issue, our biggest challenge. The President of the Republic has taken the matter to various international forums, sparking debate, which is positive. Internally, he could be the convener of a Political Pact with Governors and Mayors, to create objectives that take Brazil out of the shameful eighth place it occupies among the most unequal countries in the world.

It would be his greatest work.

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