Confronted with realities considered unimaginable only a few of years earlier, Brazil’s political landscape has shifted rapidly. Crucial political events have been occurring at a dramatic pace, from President Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment and her succession by Michel Temer, to the imprisonment of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the election of former military officer Jair Bolsonaro. Indeed, depending on the perspective from which one looks at these events, it can be argued that the limits of what is politically possible have expanded (or contracted).
This conference, ‘A horizon of (im)possibilities: reflecting on the social implications of recent political upheaval in Brazil‘, will tap into the notion of possibility, acknowledging that the recent presidential elections are but the end result, or culmination, of a series of social and political changes that have been taking place over several years. And inviting researchers to consider and critically reflect on contemporary political events and their social implications, it will guide the discussions with a key question:
What may appear to be the possibilities and impossibilities for active citizenship, democratic values, and violence prevention in the aftermath of the latest presidential elections?
Papers, welcomed from a wide variety of disciplines and practice areas, will consider (among others): What may have motivated citizens to opt for far-right political alternatives in the Brazilian context? What is the role of mobile social media in influencing voting behaviour? How do groups, such as ‘ethnic’, religious, gender and sexual minorities, deal with growing hostility against them and threats against constitutionally guaranteed rights? How to conciliate deepened social and political divisions that were accentuated ahead of the 2018 national elections?
When: 22 February, 10am–6pm
Who: Institute of Latin American Studies with support from the Society for Latin American Studies
Where: The Court Room, first floor, Senate House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU