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Rivalry and Unification: Mobilising Rural Workers in São Paulo on the Eve of the Brazilian Golpe of 1964

1995; Cambridge University Press; Volume: 27; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1017/s0022216x00010208

1469-767X

Cliff Welch,

Communism, Protests, Social Movements

Abstract The article utilises oral history, labour and military court records, newspaper accounts, and government documents to narrate the history of rural labour mobilisation in the Aha Mogiana region of São Paulo, Brazil, during the years 1959 to 1964. It shows how rival rural leaders linked either to the Brazilian Communist Party or the Catholic Church organised many workers, led numerous influential strikes, and helped hundreds of workers sue for their rights in court. Eventually, Catholic and Communist competitors joined forces under the guidance of a federal agency (SUPRA). Coordinated by SUPRA, the newly unified Alta Mogiana movement was suppressed by the military regime that took control of Brazil in April 1964.