Bread and Circuses

Streets are covered with little green and yellow flags, bars are crowded with jersey-adorned fans, and schools are closed during Brazilian matches. During the game, you can only hear the sound of your own heartbeat drumming alongside the voice of narrator Galvao Bueno, followed by the eruption of the nationwide cheer every time the country scores a goal. Brazil's biggest pride is football; everyone knows that.

Over the years, my country produced legends such as Pelé, Garrincha, Ronaldinho, and Neymar. For Brazilians, football is a religion, something you follow even if you don’t want to. This love and passion for football is passed down through generations and continues to foster within the streets. It is known for uniting bonds and breaking them. It brings people together and drives them apart. People love it, but also cry over it. To say that Brazilians were excited for the 2018 World Cup is an understatement. We become ecstatic. It’s a month-long festival, but here's where the problem lies - it shouldn't be.

In March 2014, Operacao Lava Jato (Operation Car Wash) began investigating the possible bribes that Petrobras, our largest state oil company, accepted from construction firms in return for contracts at inflated prices. In addition, the Workers Party was also accused of funneling some of these funds to pay off politicians and buy their votes.

That following summer was the World Cup, and this time we were the hosts - what an honor! However, all the money that was supposed to go toward improving the low standard of healthcare and poor quality public service was now being invested in the big international sports event. When the bus ticket prices rose from R$3,00 to R$3,20 to cover the World Cup's expenses, protests broke out all over the nation.

The protests weren’t just a result of the price hike; it was the bottled-up frustration that Brazilian people have been feeling for a long time. Frustration toward the immense social inequality, police brutality, extreme violence and lack of security on the streets, the governmental corruption, and the many other factors that pollute our lives.

But when the football squads arrived from all parts of the globe, Pitbull sang the theme song, and Neymar kicked the ball towards the goal, everything seemed to have been forgotten. We were mesmerized and enchanted. We were so focused on those eleven boys who represented our country that we forgot about the one woman, our president at the time, who was tearing it apart.

Amidst the mess was our former president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, now sentenced to prison for twelve years. His successor, Dilma Rousseff, was impeached in August 2016 for moving funds between government budgets and manipulating popular social programs as an attempt to increase her chances of being reelected. The current president, Michel Temer, is also being investigated, the outcome dependent only on his presidential immunity.

In May 2018, a truck driver’s protest reiterated the widespread disdain Brazilians have toward their ruling class. As a result, protesters who were against the rising fuel prices and unjust working conditions blocked streets in over 20 different states. Gas stations were empty, supermarkets ran out of fresh food, and flights got canceled all over the nation.

A couple of weeks later, President Michel Temer lowered the oil prices and gave more government contracts to the truck drivers. In this cycle, protests rose, but once again all was forgotten as soon as Philippe Coutinho scored his first goal against Switzerland during the first Brazilian game during the Cup this year.

During the Roman Empire, in order to appease and ensure votes from the population, politicians would hand out cheap food and entertainment aplenty, such as the infamous gladiator fights, instead of improving public policy and services. Coincidentally, Brazilian presidential elections are held in the same year as the World Cup. History is known for repeating itself, and this particular phenomenon of “bread and circuses” seems to occur every four years in Brazil.

Brazil still has a lot to change, and outsiders don’t see the failed system that we live in. Neither ignoring these flaws nor sitting at home complaining about them is a useful solution. We are under the misconception that football is the only thing that we can be proud of today. We, as a nation, need to realize that one more star above our badge, the desired ‘hexa’ World Cup title, won't change anything. It won't improve life for the underprivileged or change the injustice and corruption that goes on around us. This is why Brazilian citizens need to unite and not allow distractions to get in their way. Instead of leaving our problems aside when the World Cup begins, we should be trying to make an actual change in this country so that there is a lot more to be proud of.

Photo courtesy of Camila Wanderley Photo: Camila looking at the Brazilian flag.