Anarchism in Brazil
Encyclopedia
Anarchism was an influential contributor to the social politics of Brazil's Old Republic
. During the epoch of mass migrations
of European labourers at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, anarchist ideas
started to spread, particularly amongst the country’s labour movement
. Along with the labour migrants, many Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and German political exile
s arrived, many holding anarchist or anarcho-syndicalist
ideas.
Some did not come as exiles but rather as a type of political entrepreneur, including Giovanni Rossi
, who founded an anarchist commune
in 1889, named the colony of Cecília, in the interior of Paraná
state. The experiment only lasted a few years, but at one point consisted of 200 participants, mostly Italian migrants with urban labour backgrounds who had difficulties learning to work the land.
and among railway workers, were inspired by anarchist sympathies. In 1906 the first nationwide Brazilian workers' congress was held, and from then on the May Day
celebrations, with prominent anarchists delivering speeches, started to attract large crowds. The second national workers' congress in 1913 was initially meant to be a Pan-American anarchist congress, but only two Argentinians showed up. The labour agitation eventually culminated in the large strike movements of 1917 and 1919, biggest in São Paulo
and Rio de Janeiro
, but echoed throughout the country.
Alongside the labour federations, anarchist daily and weekly newspapers were also issued; additionally, educational centres, theatres and elementary schools were founded.
In the nineteenth century some of those newspapers were in Italian
and a few were in Spanish
and German
, but at the turn of the century most were in Portuguese. A Plebe was an important one, but there were many more, issued in virtually any state capital of Brazil.
The educational centres, schools and theatres founded by anarchists helped to draw attention to the issue of illiteracy in Brazil. This was a point taken up by various other groups in society, such as social Christian movements, inspired by Catholic social teaching
s, and various politicians aiming for containment of the social question or for popular support.
of various kinds were generally much less fragmented in Brazil than in, for example, Italy. However, the many pamphlets and essays in anarchist newspapers show that there were fierce debates about ideology and strategy between adherents of different schools. The (mostly moderate) socialists rejected strongly the position of the emerging 'social(ist) Christians' on strikes and labour unions, around 1900. Ongoing debate, especially on the necessity and danger of (central) organisation, between anarchists, libertarians and syndicalists filled the labour-based newspapers.
In 1922, some militants who had been active in anarchist circles founded the Brazilian Communist Party
(PCB), influenced by the success of the Russian Revolution of 1917
and by the feeling of failure, in appeal and unity, of the syndicalist
workers' federations. Among them, Astrojildo Pereira, Octovia Brandão, Bernardo Canelas, Jose Elias da Silva. Others, like José Oiticica
and Edgard Leuenroth
, stayed loyal to anarchist principles. The party was not recognised as communist by the Comintern
, however, being accused of being a doctrinal mess, still retaining much anarcho-syndicalist influence, and even containing elements of social democracy and Freemasonry
.
Repression of the anarchist movement, and of the labour movement in general, was very harsh. The violent police repression of strikes caused many casualties. Also, newspaper and union offices and even children’s schools were burned down. Furthermore, anarchist agitators were regularly arrested, and, if not Brazilian-born, exiled. Under the government of Artur Bernardes even concentration camps and torture centres existed, of which the most infamous was Clevelândia, in Oiapoque
, at the border with French Guyana.
While some argue that the anarchist movement had already lost out against the communists
by the 1920s, others, like Edgar Rodrigues, maintain that the anarchist movement actually kept growing during most of the 1920s, until the repression by Bernardes. In any case, the military populist movement, known as tenentismo eventually won out. The repression by the Vargas
regime, along with the introduction of the Mussolini
-inspired state-led union structure in the 1930s, proved the death-knell of the Brazilian anarchist movement.
Some traces of anarchism remained, notably the Anarchist Study Centre in Rio de Janeiro led by prof. José Oiticica, which had to go underground after the 1964 military coup. In the 1970s a small anarchist newspaper existed in Bahia
, called O inimigo do rei, but the movement would never regain the strength it had at the beginning of the twentieth century.
On Colonia Cecilia, see the article by Isabelle Felici, in: Cadernos AEL (Campinas 1998).
There exists also a novel by that name by an anarchist author named Smith.
On anarchist newspapers:
Most anarchist newspaper issues can be found in the Arquivo Edgard Leuenroth
in Campinas, but there are also examplars in other Brazilian archives, in Milan and in the IISH
in Amsterdam.
There are collections of articles published in secondary literature on the Brazilian labour movement: notably:
History of Brazil (1889-1930)
The period of Brazilian history from 1889 to 1930 is commonly called the República Velha . The República Velha ended in 1930 with a military coup that installed a dictator.-Overview:...
. During the epoch of mass migrations
Transatlantic migrations
Transatlantic migration refers to the movement of people across the Atlantic Ocean in order to settle on the continents of North and South America. It usually refers to migrations after Christopher Columbus' voyage to the Americas in 1492...
of European labourers at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, anarchist ideas
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
started to spread, particularly amongst the country’s labour movement
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
. Along with the labour migrants, many Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and German political exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
s arrived, many holding anarchist or anarcho-syndicalist
Anarcho-syndicalism
Anarcho-syndicalism is a branch of anarchism which focuses on the labour movement. The word syndicalism comes from the French word syndicat which means trade union , from the Latin word syndicus which in turn comes from the Greek word σύνδικος which means caretaker of an issue...
ideas.
Some did not come as exiles but rather as a type of political entrepreneur, including Giovanni Rossi
Giovanni Rossi
Giovanni Rossi was a Swiss professional road bicycle racer. He was professional from 1949 to 1954 where he won two victories. In the only Tour de France that he participated, Rossi won the first stage and wore the maillot jaune for one stage after his win...
, who founded an anarchist commune
Commune (intentional community)
A commune is an intentional community of people living together, sharing common interests, property, possessions, resources, and, in some communes, work and income. In addition to the communal economy, consensus decision-making, non-hierarchical structures and ecological living have become...
in 1889, named the colony of Cecília, in the interior of Paraná
Paraná (state)
Paraná is one of the states of Brazil, located in the South of the country, bordered on the north by São Paulo state, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Santa Catarina state and the Misiones Province of Argentina, and on the west by Mato Grosso do Sul and the republic of Paraguay,...
state. The experiment only lasted a few years, but at one point consisted of 200 participants, mostly Italian migrants with urban labour backgrounds who had difficulties learning to work the land.
Anarcho-syndicalist labour movement, press and schools
Anarchism or anarcho-syndicalism was the dominant ideology underpinning the Brazilian labour movement at the beginning of the twentieth century. Syndicates and labour federations were erected, mainly pressing for shorter workdays, better working conditions and higher salaries. Various strikes, i.e. in the harbour of SantosSantos (São Paulo)
-Sister cities: Shimonoseki, Japan Nagasaki, Japan Funchal, Portugal Trieste, Italy Coimbra, Portugal Ansião, Portugal Arouca, Portugal Ushuaia, Argentina Havana, Cuba Taizhou. China Ningbo. China Constanţa, Romania Ulsan, South Korea Colón, Panama* Cadiz, Spain...
and among railway workers, were inspired by anarchist sympathies. In 1906 the first nationwide Brazilian workers' congress was held, and from then on the May Day
May Day
May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....
celebrations, with prominent anarchists delivering speeches, started to attract large crowds. The second national workers' congress in 1913 was initially meant to be a Pan-American anarchist congress, but only two Argentinians showed up. The labour agitation eventually culminated in the large strike movements of 1917 and 1919, biggest in São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
and Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, but echoed throughout the country.
Alongside the labour federations, anarchist daily and weekly newspapers were also issued; additionally, educational centres, theatres and elementary schools were founded.
In the nineteenth century some of those newspapers were in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
and a few were in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, but at the turn of the century most were in Portuguese. A Plebe was an important one, but there were many more, issued in virtually any state capital of Brazil.
The educational centres, schools and theatres founded by anarchists helped to draw attention to the issue of illiteracy in Brazil. This was a point taken up by various other groups in society, such as social Christian movements, inspired by Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state...
s, and various politicians aiming for containment of the social question or for popular support.
Repression, fragmentation and decline
Anarchists, anarcho-syndicalists and socialistsSocialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
of various kinds were generally much less fragmented in Brazil than in, for example, Italy. However, the many pamphlets and essays in anarchist newspapers show that there were fierce debates about ideology and strategy between adherents of different schools. The (mostly moderate) socialists rejected strongly the position of the emerging 'social(ist) Christians' on strikes and labour unions, around 1900. Ongoing debate, especially on the necessity and danger of (central) organisation, between anarchists, libertarians and syndicalists filled the labour-based newspapers.
In 1922, some militants who had been active in anarchist circles founded the Brazilian Communist Party
Brazilian Communist Party
Brazilian Communist Party is the oldest political party still active in Brazil, founded in 1922, and one of the only Brazilian parties with a Stalinist orientation...
(PCB), influenced by the success of the Russian Revolution of 1917
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
and by the feeling of failure, in appeal and unity, of the syndicalist
Syndicalism
Syndicalism is a type of economic system proposed as a replacement for capitalism and an alternative to state socialism, which uses federations of collectivised trade unions or industrial unions...
workers' federations. Among them, Astrojildo Pereira, Octovia Brandão, Bernardo Canelas, Jose Elias da Silva. Others, like José Oiticica
José Oiticica
José Rodrigues Oiticica , was a Brazilian anarchist, poet, and activist. He was founder and editor of the anarchist journal Direct Action, between 1946 until his death. He also wrote and published several books of poetry....
and Edgard Leuenroth
Edgard Leuenroth
Edgard Leuenroth was a Brazilian journalist, publisher and writer, who became famous for his documentation of the country's earliest social movements, particularly the communist, socialist and anarchist worker's and intellectual's activities and movements.Leuenroth was born in the city of Mogi...
, stayed loyal to anarchist principles. The party was not recognised as communist by the Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
, however, being accused of being a doctrinal mess, still retaining much anarcho-syndicalist influence, and even containing elements of social democracy and Freemasonry
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
.
Repression of the anarchist movement, and of the labour movement in general, was very harsh. The violent police repression of strikes caused many casualties. Also, newspaper and union offices and even children’s schools were burned down. Furthermore, anarchist agitators were regularly arrested, and, if not Brazilian-born, exiled. Under the government of Artur Bernardes even concentration camps and torture centres existed, of which the most infamous was Clevelândia, in Oiapoque
Oiapoque
Oiapoque is a municipality in the north of the state of Amapá, Brazil. Its population is 11,449 and its area is 22,625 km². Oiapoque is also a major river in the same state, forming the international border with French Guiana...
, at the border with French Guyana.
While some argue that the anarchist movement had already lost out against the communists
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
by the 1920s, others, like Edgar Rodrigues, maintain that the anarchist movement actually kept growing during most of the 1920s, until the repression by Bernardes. In any case, the military populist movement, known as tenentismo eventually won out. The repression by the Vargas
Getúlio Vargas
Getúlio Dornelles Vargas served as President of Brazil, first as dictator, from 1930 to 1945, and in a democratically elected term from 1951 until his suicide in 1954. Vargas led Brazil for 18 years, the most for any President, and second in Brazilian history to Emperor Pedro II...
regime, along with the introduction of the Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
-inspired state-led union structure in the 1930s, proved the death-knell of the Brazilian anarchist movement.
Some traces of anarchism remained, notably the Anarchist Study Centre in Rio de Janeiro led by prof. José Oiticica, which had to go underground after the 1964 military coup. In the 1970s a small anarchist newspaper existed in Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
, called O inimigo do rei, but the movement would never regain the strength it had at the beginning of the twentieth century.
Further reading
- Maram, Sheldon Leslie, Anarquistas, movimento operario, immigrants (1978)
On Colonia Cecilia, see the article by Isabelle Felici, in: Cadernos AEL (Campinas 1998).
There exists also a novel by that name by an anarchist author named Smith.
On anarchist newspapers:
- Ferreira, Maria Nazareth, A imprensa operária no Brasil 1880-1920 (Petrópolis 1978).
Most anarchist newspaper issues can be found in the Arquivo Edgard Leuenroth
Arquivo Edgard Leuenroth
Arquivo Edgard Leuenroth is a historical and media archive that is maintained by the Brazilian State University of Campinas , located in the city of Campinas in the state of São Paulo, Brazil...
in Campinas, but there are also examplars in other Brazilian archives, in Milan and in the IISH
International Institute of Social History
The International Institute of Social History is a historical research institute in Amsterdam. It was founded in 1935 by Nicolaas Posthumus. The IISG is part of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences....
in Amsterdam.
There are collections of articles published in secondary literature on the Brazilian labour movement: notably:
- Hall, Michael and Pinheiro, P. S. A classe operária no Brasil 1889-1930.
- Carone, Edgard Movimento operário 1877-1944 (1979).