Breno Bringel

Chair: Prof. Dr. Renata Campos Motta, Berlin
The election of Jair Bolsonaro has often been interpreted as yet another step in the global advance of national populism or even fascism. Breno Bringel offers a novel interpretation of developments in Brazil by presenting the Bolsonaro regime as a variety of a complex historical and political phenomenon best described as authoritarian neoliberalism. He explains the rise of conservative and reactionary movements in Brazil through their relationship with the Brazilian left with its different generations and political cultures. Stepping back from the short-term dimension of political mobilization, Bringel links recent protest in Brazil—and elsewhere in the world—with the end of a broader political cycle that was marked by democratization and a rights-based imaginary. Focusing on the intersection between the economic, social, and cultural dimensions of contemporary politics, he seeks to offer a broader perspective on how to grasp—and resist—the current historical moment.

Breno Bringel is Professor of Sociology at the Institute of Social and Political Studies at the State University of Rio de Janeiro. He is currently director of the Latin American Sociological Association. His work is located at the intersection of social movements, social theory, and critical geopolitics. He has published extensively on these topics, and his latest books are Critical Geopolitics and Regional (Re)Configurations: Interregionalism and Transnationalism between Latin America and Europe (2019) and An Era of Change in Brazil (2018).

Renata Campos Motta is Junior Professor of the sociology of Latin America at the Free University of Berlin.

A joint event with Research Committee 47 (Social Classes and Social Movements) of the International Sociological Association.

In English. Free and open to all without registration.