Who is Brazil?

Upon arriving to Brazil I soon realized the visible signs of a developing country. A country in which its cities are regulated only to a certain extent, and in which its people expect things not to work.

Upon exploring more aspects of Brazilian culture we dove into the topics of favelas. One of the interesting things about favelas is the relationship between the community members and the police. The favelas symbolize the relationship between the police and the rest of Brazilian society. It seems that the police is not a beacon of safety and order for the people, it is merely a tool wielded by the wealthy to exert power over those less fortunate. Thus you are left with the saying, “for my loved ones, everything; for my enemies, the law”. Was Brazil a more developed country in which corruption was not as widespread as it currently is, I believe the police would be more reliable and honest to its people. 

Brazil has a long way to go before its country’s corruption is eradicated however the first steps have been taken in the political sphere. With the impeachment of the president comes a backend deal with the leader of PMDB, one of the most corrupt parties in Brazil. Unfortunately one of the biggest roadblocks for a developing country is corruption however it is nearly impossible to get by it. It is not people that hold the power, it is money and you can see how it plays a role within Brazilian society since there is no middle class.

You have the rich, the poor, and nothing in between. As money holds the power, the rich find themselves only getting richer while the poor find themselves being suppressed. Conditions seem to be difficult for anybody who isn’t born rich as they are entered into a public school from the start, which does not bestow a strong education upon its students. Once the child hits a working age, he or she is put to work. Once work is begun, it almost doesn’t add up to continue with education if the money they make is enough for them to survive. However, if the person aspires to get an education then he or she must apply to schools, whether it be a public or private university. The public universities are the strong universities and they are free for its students, however the private university is the weaker university yet each student must pay tuition to go to it. So the students that are had to spend their time working while in high school did not have the opportunity to fully invest themselves into their studies making it all the more difficult for them to pass the tests necessary for acceptance into a public university. They are left going to a private university with the weaker education and high tuition bills, or they are left without a university education.

Thus the population carries on in the country. With consumerism on the rise as the economy develops itself, the education of the people does not rise for opportunities are not created at the same rate as the economic incline.

This is reflected in the voting of the people for the people must vote for somebody or for a political party when the time comes to do so, otherwise they are fined for not voting. Thus it is easier for them to go to the polls and vote for a random name. Most people are busy working hard in order to take care of their loved ones and providing for them, so much so that they do not have the time or inclination to follow the political elections that affect the rest of the people.

One of the thought processes that is incredibly prevalent in Brazil is thinking on a micro-scale instead of a macro-scale. People think about their inner circle of people but not about the well-being of the greater population that they are a part of. Their small-scale thinking could be part of the reason why corruption is so strong within the country. There is not enough people caring to make enough of a difference necessary to get the development of the country to surpass its current roadblock. If the education was stronger and the system of keeping the poor poor and making the rich richer was destroyed, we’d be able to create a community of people within the country that would bring great success to the Brazilian name. However, we are not there yet. Until that day, most people will continue to focus in on their close circles and they will continue to follow their passions, just as the concept of the cordial man exemplifies.

Little by little, people are beginning to notice that their social and political systems aren’t working, as is exemplified by the current impeachment process going on and the strikes happening here and there and everywhere. Yet with the chaos ensuing, it is the larger powers (the organizations with money) that are taking advantage and working their best to profit off of the people’s strife.

I can see Brazil joining the ranks of the developed countries someday sooner than later but this would take a lot of time and there would have to be a lot of change to the country and its culture before this happens.