Communism in Brazil
[9] The workers published a bulletin, titled Jornal dos Typographos, stating their demands for better pay in light of increasing food prices.
Inspired by that proposal, in October, workers participating in the 21-day strike in Porto Alegre achieved a partial success, reducing their work day from 11 to 9 hours.
However, strikes were more commonly met with police repression and, even when successfully leading to new agreements, company owners could simply decide not to honor them or revert any of the changes after some time.
[11][12][13] Facing the abolition of slavery in Brazil a few years prior, in 1888, coffee farmers saw immigration as a source of cheap labor to meet production demands.
[14] Ideologically, not every revolutionary worker self-identified as a communist or a socialist; many were deemed anarchists, who rejected the idea of political parties, and instead preferred direct action or organization though unions.
[12] Moreover, with growing demand for food in belligerent countries, Brazil began heavily exporting crops and meat which, in turn, caused shortages and a massive price increase locally.
[18] In this context, with worse working conditions, a higher cost of living and diminishing purchasing power, workers were at a historical low point.
[17][19][13] This culminated in the general strike of 1917, starting in the Mooca district of São Paulo, in early June, and spreading throughout Brazil in the following days.
[13] Additionally, women played a significant role in organizing the strikes: beyond being workers themselves, they were also usually in charge of home finances – and thus saw firsthand the ever-growing prices of goods.
[18] It is also in this context that anti-communism sentiment was birthed, developed from a fear by the elites of revolutionary action by the proletariat; in Brazil, newspapers at the time denounced Vladimir Lenin as an outlaw or a crook.
[13] Astrojildo Pereira, one of the bigger enthusiasts of the Russian Revolution in Brazil, would write to newspapers under pseudonyms to combat the hostile framing of the event.
[20] A few days later, news broke of the foundation of Brazil's first self-declared Communist Party (Partido Comunista do Brasil, PCdoB) in 9 March 1919, open to "anarchists, socialists and all of those who accepted social communism".
[15] The group was largely sympathetic to the Russian Revolution, frequently reprinting documents on events in the Soviet Union, though not organizing any meaningful action towards any revolutionary goal in Brazil.
[18] The party, created through the meeting of 9 delegates representing 73 affiliates throughout the country, was hurried in light of the soon-approaching 4th World Congress of the Communist International, for which Brazil had been lacking representation.
Bernardes' candidacy was part of the milk coffee politics of the time, a scheme which ensured only candidates from the two wealthiest states, Minas Gerais and São Paulo, would occupy the presidency.
The opposition contested the election results and, over the following months, a military conspiracy emerged across the country to remove the still-in-office Epitácio Pessoa and prevent Bernardes' inauguration.
[23] Under the leadership of Luis Carlos Prestes, a prominent communist figure, the Comintern provided funding, propaganda, and youth programs, which helped the movement grow rapidly.
This process culminated in the coup of 10 November 1937, which closed the National Congress of Brazil, canceled the upcoming 1938 presidential elections, and installed Getúlio Vargas as a dictator.
Despite being driven underground, the PCB clandestinely supported Brazilian involvement in World War II,[28] due to which its membership increased to 82,000 and its leaders were released.
[29] It later underwent progressive and gradual reconstruction,[30][31] particularly in Bahia, led by prominent intellectuals from the Northeast such as Jorge Amado, Carlos Marighella, Aristeu Nogueira, Diógenes Arruda Câmara, Leôncio Basbaum, Alberto Passos Guimarães, Maurício Grabois, Graciliano Ramos, Osvaldo Peralva, and Armênio Guedes.
At this congress, the PCB resolved to support the coordination of demonstrations against martial law, while the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB) pursued armed guerrilla warfare.
[40] Despite some initial successes, these groups became socially isolated as the regime's repression intensified, accompanied by a disinformation campaign designed to undermine public support for the rebels.
Despite President João Figueiredo's political liberalization, communist activists traveling to the Soviet Union continued to face arrests upon their return.
[42] However, their efforts were hampered by inexperience, police surveillance during periods of persecution, and the detachment of exiles from the country's evolving social and political landscape.
[43][44] Despite severe repression, communist influence remained strong in labor movements, notably within the Volkswagen union, which represented workers in the country's largest company at the time.
[47] However, during the 1978–1980 ABC Paulista strikes, the Workers' Party (PT) rapidly gained prominence, taking advantage of the PCB's inability to adapt to new political realities.
[56] There are, currently, seven self-declared communist and left-wing socialist political parties in Brazil registered with the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), shown in the table below.
Near the end of Dilma Rousseff's presidency and the mass protests from late 2014 through 2016, the expression Nossa bandeira jamais será vermelha [pt] ("Our flag will never be red") became a popular anti-communist motto.
