RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Social groups and organized soccer fans gathered Sunday afternoon, June 14th, to protest against racism, fascism, and President Jair Bolsonaro on Paulista Avenue. The rally started at the São Paulo Museum of Art and continued towards Paraíso neighborhood. According to State Police estimates, there were about a thousand people present.
Due to an agreement mediated by the São Paulo Prosecutor’s Office, only the group against the president paraded on Paulista Avenue on Sunday. Jair Bolsonaro’s supporters protested at the Chá viaduct (downtown) and gathered about a hundred people, according to the State Police.
The self-titled anti-fascist and pro-democracy groups were led by ‘Somos Democracia’ (We are Democracy), ‘Frente Povo Sem Medo’ (Fearless People Front), MTST (Movement of Homeless Workers) and CMP (Central Popular Movements) organizations, in addition to anti-fascist soccer fans groups from the four largest clubs in São Paulo: Corinthians, Palmeiras, São Paulo and Santos.
These organizations advocate the President’s removal from office and display messages against racism and fascism, in addition to championing the extension of the population’s rights. The movement’s organization once again urged demonstrators to wear masks, to sanitize their hands, and to try to keep their social distance due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Attorney Paula Nunes dos Santos, 26, attended the rally in defense of black people. “I’m here today because I want black youths to have the right to a future,” she said as she held up a banner with the words: “Black lives matter”.
Student Mel Sevlai, 16, said she had gone to Paulista to “demonstrate against the widespread fascism in the country”. Her colleague, also a student, Raul de Oliveira, 17, added that he also attended the event to protest the government’s racist acts.
Early on, there was a degree of commotion when three youths with Nazi symbols walked by the protest. Anti-fascist demonstrators tried to expel them from the scene. When reaching a parked State Police (PM) car, one of the anti-fascist demonstrators denounced the three neo-Nazis, so the PMs said they would drive the accuser and the neo-Nazis to the police station.