Protests Happening In Brazil

I've been feeling more patriotic towards my homeland than I ever felt in my whole life, and this includes the World Cup seasons. The reason is that a lot of protests have been happening in Brazil. It all started with a 20 cent (about 10 cents in dollar) increase in bus fare in Sao Paulo, that was the last straw. People went out to the streets to express their indignation towards this, to show the government that it can’t do whatever it wants to the people, that they will no longer just sit and accept whatever injustice is thrown at them. Seeing the uproar in Sao Paulo and the violent response of the police against the peaceful protesters, the whole country decided to wake up and protest together as one.
But it’s not about 20 cents. Not anymore. The protests aren’t happening for just one reason, every city and/or state decided to pick their own reason to protest. But there are the main ones, which are as follow:In preparing to host the World Cup in 2014, Brazil has spent a ridiculous amount of money and taken absurd measures to accommodate tourists. Stadiums cost three times more than they should have, the biggest example being the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, which was completely reformed for the Pan American Games in 2007 and for no reason was completely rebuilt. Brazil has spent more money with this event than the last two World Cups combined! Also, people are being FORCED to leave their houses so new roads can be built for the World Cup. Yes, people are being kicked out of their houses just so some tourists can get to a stadium and have a couple hours of fun. The people have also turned against the biggest TV network in the country, Globo, which has been ruling the country for over 5 decades with its brainwashing news shows and award-winning novelas. The media coverage of the protests shown by Globo only showed the isolated acts of vandalism that happened in the protests, and highlighted that the protesters were being violent, as if they were the villains. There’s more, the same old situation of hospitals not being able to care for the crowds that line up their corridors every day. Doctors often tell patients to leave and look for another hospital on their own! And of course there is the good old corruption, which is a huge reality in the country, one that the people have revolted against as well.
The responses so far have been slow. The bus fare in many cities cut the increase, which was a small victory. Globo had to take their logo off the microphones of their reporters to avoid people jumping in front of the camera and yelling, which happened a few times. They are using national heroes such as Ronaldo and Pele to tell and convince the people that they should focus on soccer, on the World Cup, and forget everything else. Surprisingly enough, the people also turned against these heroes. The president, Dilma Rousseff, has proposed a pact, and met with every governor and the mayor of every capital in the country to try and reach an agreeable plan to deal with health care, education, and public transportation.
As we wait to see the result of the protests, we can be assured that the Brazilian government no longer mounts the people. As the slogan used in protests said, “the giant has awakened” and will not rest again until changes happen. I am extremely proud of my country and super excited about everything that has been going on. I’m outside the country, so the least I can do is to make some noise, publicly show my support to my friends and family, to show them I care about their fight and that I’m with them. There was a symbolic protest here in Boston to show support to the Brazilian people, and I was there (where the picture above was taken) doing what little I can to get the word out. I’m happy to see and be a part of a historic moment like this. #changeBrazil.