As we were writing this article in Rio de Janeiro’s bohemian Lapa neighborhood, we heard the sound of tear gas being used by police to suppress mass protests against harsh austerity plans proposed by Brazil’s three-month-old conservative government.
If approved, the so-called “Bridge to the Future” policy would impose a spending cap that would freeze the federal budget, but with inflation-based increases. Between 2017 and 2037, no centavo will be allocated to public health, education or poverty alleviation, nor childhood development.
The history of the cuts shows that they hurt women more than men. Women are faced with a triple burden of time as they must feed and care for their families without government assistance. Austerity measures have been associated with an increase in domestic violence.
Women at a Crossroads
The threat to the economic, social, and political well-being of women comes after significant gains were made in the past decade when Brazil was proud to put the “B”, in the BRICS.
The BRICS has become a boys club with the impeachment and removal of Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff. Victor Ruiz Garcia/Reuters
In 2006, the country adopted legislation to protect women from domestic violence. The conditional cash transfer program Bolsa Familia, directed primarily at female heads of households, increased the economic empowerment and power of women.
Dilma Rousseff was elected as the first woman president of Brazil in 2010. She was re-elected four years after that. Brazil climbed from 97th place to 75th position in the global rankings for gender equality between 2014 and 2015.
We knew as gender researchers that real equality would be a long way off. In absolute terms, Brazil is ranked 4th worldwide for child marriage. Recently, it was possible to believe that we are heading in the right direction and that women and girls really matter.
Due to the social movements that have taken place in Brazil, Latin America, and through hashtags and street demonstrations, the message about gender equality is becoming more and more official.
White men are the new women
The threats to Brazil’s progress in gender equality are more than just economic. These threats are also seen at the highest levels of politics.
In the same way that the world was shocked when Donald Trump, a man who boasted of “grabbing women by their pussies”, won the United States elections over the supremely-qualified former Secretary-of-State Hillary Clinton, Brazil also saw its presidency handed over to a male this year.
Rousseff , the former president of Brazil, was ousted in August 2016 for her incompetence and questionable accounting practices. Many referred to the impeachment as a witch hunt because of its gender-specific nature.
During Rousseff’s trial in the Brazilian Congress, male lawmakers voted against Rousseff using patronising words (“goodbye my dear”), and congratulating the military unit which had tormented Dilma Rousseff during Brazil’s dictatorship.
Many of the male co-workers who forced Rousseff to resign were themselves under investigation for more serious wrongdoing, including Speaker of House Eduardo Cunha who was arrested in October for corruption.
Michel Temer, Brazil’s newly-elected president (second from the left), has appointed Brazil’s first male-only cabinet since 1979. Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters
Rousseff’s successor, Michel Temer, her vice-president, is a conservative Evangelical Christian who is allied with Congress’s powerful religious rights. In August 2016, after assuming the presidency, he appointed an all-white and all-male cabinet. This was the first government of this kind since 1979. Temer also eliminated the position of Minister of Race Equality and Minister of Women. However, public outcry forced Temer to reverse his decision.
Brazil’s October and November mayoral elections showed a similar swing to the right. Rio de Janeiro chose former Pentecostal Bishop Marcelo Crivella as its mayor, while Sao Paulo chose millionaire conservative Joao Doria.
In the past year, political events have shown a clear reaction to recent gains in equality and justice. The myth of the white, Christian, male entitlement is still prevalent in the media, the church, business, and politics. It has made many feel angry and disenfranchised in the last decade.
Women’s equality and rights are not top priorities for either President Temer or the mayors Crivella or Doria. Abortion is illegal in Brazil unless, in rare cases, and not on the table for discussion. The government is now planning to reduce paid maternity leave, despite recently extending paternity leaves.