The Bolsonaro Paradox The Public Sphere and Right-Wing Counterpublicity in Contemporary Brazil

This book presents the first in-depth academic investigation published in English about one of the most radical incarnations of the current global wave of new right-wing movements and governments: the movement that brought to power the current Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro. The rise of this new right-wing movement in Brazil came as a surprise to many analysts who used to see the country as a successful example of the implementation of progressive social policies in the first decade of the 21^st century, and posed many questions to those seeking to understand the role Brazil now plays in the development of this international far-right wave.

The authors of this volume try to answer some of these questions by presenting the results of an extensive field research conducted over the years with Bolsonaro supporters and members of the new Brazilian right-wing movements. They have analyzed quantitative and especially qualitative data to accompany the accelerated transformations of the Brazilian public sphere, starting from small liberal and conservative groups on social media towards larger audiences via book publishing, the education system, the mainstream media, and the political-party system.

By framing the Brazilian case in the wider international political scenario, The Bolsonaro Paradox: The Public Sphere and Right-Wing Counterpublicity in Contemporary Brazil will be an invaluable resource for sociologists, political scientists, international relations scholars and other social scientists – as well as to journalists and political analysts – interested in better understanding the role Brazil plays in the global rise of new far-right movements and governments.   

1 Introduction.- 2 The New Brazilian Right: Radical and Shameless.- 3 The Conservative Reaction and the June 2013 Revolts.- 4 Bolsonaro’s Rise.- 5 Conclusion.

Camila Rocha holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil. Winner of the Brazilian Political Science Association's best thesis award and the University of São Paulo's Outstanding Thesis in Human Sciences award, she works as a parliamentary advisor, political consultant, and qualitative research coordinator for the third sector. She co-edited the book O Impeachment de Dilma Rousseff nas redes e nas ruas ["Dilma Rousseff's Impeachment in Social Media and on the Streets"](Expressão Popular, Brazil, 2018) and wrote ‘Menos marx mais Mises’ O liberalismo e a nova direita no Brasil (‘Less Marx more Mises’ Liberalism and the New Brazilian Right) (Todavia, Brazil, 2021).

Esther Solano Gallego is professor of International Relations at the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Brazil. She holds a PhD in Social Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid, Spain, and currently conducts research on the Brazilian political crisis, conservatism and political behavior. She has edited the book O ódio como política ["Hate as Politics"] (Boitempo, Brazil, 2018) and co-edited the book O Impeachment de Dilma Rousseff nas redes e nas ruas ["Dilma Rousseff's Impeachment in Social Media and on the Streets"](Expressão Popular, Brazil, 2018).

Jonas Medeiros is a social scientist and a researcher at the Brazilian Center for Analysis and Planning (CEBRAP), where he is a member of the Law and Democracy Nucleus (Núcleo Direito e Democracia). He holds a PhD in Education from the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil, and currently researches public sphere, social movements, and critical theory. He co-authored Escolas de Luta [“Combative Schools”] (Veneta, Brazil, 2016) and co-edited Ocupar e Resistir: Movimentos de ocupação de escolas pelo Brasil (2015-2016) [“Occupy and Resist: School Occupation Movements across Brazil”] (Editora 34, Brazil, 2019).