A powerful analysis of Brazil’s authoritarian resurgence and the dynamic strategies of dissent that redefined political resistance.

Faces of Authoritarianism and Strategies of Dissent in Contemporary Brazil dissects the Bolsonaro era as a critical moment in Brazil’s long history of democratic struggle, outlining how authoritarianism took shape and how it was challenged. Rather than viewing Bolsonaro’s presidency as an anomaly, this volume situates it within broader historical and political continuities and highlights the ways state and non-state actors alike engaged in battles over democracy’s meaning.

Interlacing interdisciplinary perspectives, the book explores key arenas of contestation, from institutions under siege to grassroots resistance, providing theoretical depth and rich ethnographic accounts. With a focus on repression and resistance and the shifting boundaries of democratic governance, Faces of Authoritarianism displays a crucial framework for understanding Brazil’s political landscape and its global implications. Required reading for scholars of authoritarianism, democracy, and Latin American politics, this book offers a nuanced view of how democratic backsliding is met with acts of defiance and negotiation.

The first volume in English to analyze the impact of recent political phenomena in Brazil, from the rise of Bolsonaro to the climate crisis.
 
Since the shocking 2018 presidential election in Brazil, a growing body of scholarship has attempted to understand the country’s so-called “conservative turn.” A gripping in-depth account of politics and society in Brazil today, this new volume brings together a myriad of different perspectives to help us better understand the political events that have shaken the country in recent years.

Combining ethnographic insights with political science, history, sociology, and anthropology, the interdisciplinary analyses included in A Horizon of (Im)possibilities offer a panoramic view on social and political change in Brazil, spanning temporal and spatial dimensions. Starting with the 2018 presidential election, the contributors discuss the country’s recent—and more distant—past in relation to the present. Pointing to the continuities and disruptions during those years, this volume is an invaluable guide to understanding the limits of political democracy.