Anti-Bolsonaro Protests Took to the Streets on September Seventh

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – While the September Seventh parades began in Parque do Anhembi, at another point in São Paulo, the rally summoned by several social movement and union leaders started. Among the most heard words were “Bolsonaro, out” and “Free Lula“.

The organizers, including the National Union of Students (UNE) and the Brazilian Union of Secondary Students (UBES), had called on the participants to wear black clothes as a sign of mourning. But in addition to black, red – usually associated with the left – also prevailed in costumes.

According to the State Police, the event brought together some 500 people, a number which contrasted with the estimate of 30,000 participants reported by Hugo Fanton, coordinator of the Central de Movimentos Populares (“Center for Popular Organizations”).

According to Fanton, one of the mottos of this year’s meeting, which is held annually, was “Esse sistema não vale” (“This system is no good”), alluding to the environmental disasters caused by mining company Vale in Brumadinho, Minas Gerais.

In addition to UNE and UBES, PT and PSOL politicians, trade union centers such as CUT, Brazilian Workers’ Confederation (CTB) and the Landless Movement (MST) also took part in the event in São Paulo Capital.

Recife

In Recife, demonstrators took part in a four-hour walk. Dressed in black and red, protesters claimed money for public education.

The protest also drew attention to the fires in northern Brazil. “There are several situations that are worrying us and the Amazon is one of them,” said Archbishop Fernando Saburido of Olinda and Recife.

The march took up four lanes of Avenida Agamenon Magalhães, one of the capital’s main highways, along two blocks. Sought, the State Police failed to estimate the number of demonstrators.

Salvador

The Grito dos Excluídos (“Cry of the Excluded”) began to unfold around 9:00 AM on Saturday, September 7th, in Salvador. Dressed in black or red, protesters started a march approximately two hours later with an ecumenical act. Representatives of trade unions, clergy, students, and scientists were among the participants.

“The president called on the patriots to wear green and yellow in honor of the Amazon. The student movements called on the students and the whole society to come to the streets in black, in mourning for what is happening in the Amazon and against the attacks on education. What motivates us is the defense of our country, true patriotism, not this image that he is trying to sell,” says Debora Nepomuceno, 20, national vice-president of the Brazilian Union of Secondary Students (UBES).

When asked about the number of protesters, the State Police say they have no estimate.

Belo Horizonte

Demonstrators also protested in Belo Horizonte against Jair Bolsonaro’s government. Part of those present wore black clothes, in reaction to Bolsonaro’s call for the population to take to the streets in green and yellow clothes this Saturday. Many, however, chose red.

“Free Lula” banners were spread throughout the region. Posters and signs calling for investments in education prevailed in the protests. Students and professors from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) wore T-shirts with the slogan “knowledge without cuts”.