Dictatorship or democracy: the rope will break on one side or the other.

By Tereza Cruvinel, from Journalists for Democracy

It wasn't a bloody Sunday yet, but it may have been a harbinger: from now on, the authoritarian escalation of Bolsonaro and his militias will encounter resistance. In this tug-of-war, either the coup will win or democracy will win, halting the dictatorship project that Bolsonaro no longer disguises. The signal came from the streets, where there were pro-democracy demonstrations in five capital cities, and from the institutional struggle, voiced by Minister Celso de Mello: "It is necessary to resist the destruction of the democratic order, to avoid what happened in the Weimar Republic," when Hitler imposed Nazism on Germany.

What Bolsonaro's supporters promise, when they call for intervention by the Armed Forces and the closure of the other branches of government, is a "despicable and abject military dictatorship," said the senior justice of the Supreme Federal Court. On Saturday night, a handful of members of the terrorist group "300 do Brasil" staged a macabre demonstration at the entrance of the Supreme Federal Court. Dressed in black and wearing white masks, similar to those of the Ku Klux Klan, they lit torches at the court's door, which has already been threatened with arson, according to the fake news investigation.

As happens every Sunday, Brasília was the stage for the seventh meeting between Bolsonaro and his supporters since the beginning of the pandemic. He is now making ostentatious use of the symbols of power. For the second time, he used a helicopter to travel four kilometers between the Alvorada Palace and the Three Powers Square. He flew over the Esplanade six times, with the Minister of Defense by his side, which was yet another serious omen. And just like General Newton Cruz during the dictatorship, when the amendment for direct elections was voted on, he asked a military policeman for a horse and marched proudly among his supporters.

In São Paulo, the initiative to confront Bolsonaro's supporters in the streets didn't come from a political party or any political front, but from organized football fan groups, a sign of how much politics and legitimate social movements have been weakened by the dismantling of democracy, initiated by Lava Jato. But someone had to step up, as if to say that the 70% no longer accept the role of a silent majority in the face of the ominous march of fascism. It may have been an isolated spark, but there are signs of a "enough is enough" stuck in people's throats.

The pandemic has so far prevented popular demonstrations by the 70% majority who do not support Bolsonaro, but the fear of the virus has begun to be challenged, just as in the United States, where Sunday saw new and significant anti-racism demonstrations after the murder of George Floyd, a Black man.  

Congressman Glauber Braga (PSOL) was one of those who broke quarantine to join the supporters' demonstration. No one knows what will happen from now on, but the spark showed that there are pent-up energies. There were also demonstrations in defense of democracy in São Paulo, Rio, Brasília, Belo Horizonte, and Curitiba.

On Paulista Avenue, the police repressed the demonstration led by fan groups, against whom they launched bombs, and protected Bolsonaro supporters. Governor João Dória said that his police tried to protect the physical integrity of both sides, but that wasn't the case. The videos clearly show this. Since he is not a Bolsonaro supporter, he shouldn't be in charge of his Military Police. He owes explanations.

From now on, it will be the same. Anyone who dares to take to the streets in defense of democracy should prepare for repression. Most of the Military Police have been militarized by Bolsonaro's supporters and will repress anti-coup demonstrations. And if such demonstrations gain momentum, Bolsonaro will resort (like Trump) to the rhetoric of disorder that needs to be contained. He is already planning, for such a situation, to decree a GLO (Operation to Guarantee Law and Order) throughout the country. There is supposedly training underway in the Army for such a situation.

Institutional resistance needs the struggle in the streets, and vice versa. The Supreme Federal Court needs to be supported and have its vanguard role in defending the Constitution and democracy recognized.

The investigations need to move forward. The one into fake news and the other one, requested by the Attorney General (who must have regretted it), to identify the financiers and organizers of the anti-democratic acts. Minister Alexandre de Moraes has a lot of work ahead of him.

The fake news inquiry will undermine the legal actions before the TSE (Superior Electoral Court) seeking the annulment of the Bolsonaro-Mourão ticket. This week, Alexandre de Moraes will be sworn in as a minister of the TSE, much to the dismay of Bolsonaro supporters.

Yesterday, Sunday marked the end of May, a terrible month for Brazilians from a health standpoint: the pandemic surged, and 24 people lost their lives. On April 30th, only 6 had died. Today, we are about to surpass 30 deaths.

June begins with the same mismanagement in the health sector. And also with the omen that the moment of truth is approaching. 

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