Introduction The Grassroots Right in Latin America: Patterns, Causes, and Consequences

Abstract

A fter a decade of leftist governments, the Latin American right is resurgent.While rightist and center-rightist politicians and parties have come to power in a number of countries, the shift is most significant at the grassroots. This special section of Latin American Politics and Society is dedicated to understanding the "grassroots right": the diverse citizens, civil society associations, and religious groups engaged in activism to support right-wing issues. Their causes range from restricting abortion, affirmative action, and LGBTQ+ rights to expanding gun rights and violently repressing crime to supporting free markets and opposing redistribution.We know too little about the grassroots right in contemporary Latin America. Recent work on civil society in the region has focused mostly on left-leaning groups that mobilize for social and economic rights. For instance, a rich literature has developed to study feminist movements (

Tropical Trump, or a very Brazilian tale? Social class resentment as a moderating factor between anti-PT sentiment and the vote for Jair Bolsonaro in 2018

“…This article has explored possible explanatory factors behind decisions to vote for Jair Bolsonaro during the general election of 2018, thus directly fitting into a growing literature with similar aims (Bacelar da Silva;Larkins, 2019;Amaral, 2020;Davis;Straubhaar, 2020;Rennó, 2020;Setzler, 2020;Layton et al, 2021;Mayka;Smith, 2021).…”

“…Further contributions within the framework of the cultural backlash hypothesis examined the role of anti-Black backlash in Brazil (Bacelar da Silva;Larkins, 2019) showing how the 2018 presidential election functioned as a detonator for a more overt expression of racial prejudice. Similarly, Mayka and Smith (2021) consider that Bolsonaro's rhetoric aligned with the grassroots right, defined as a socio-political movement involving a heterogenous set of actors who mobilize against abortion or LGBTQI+ rights, and in favor of gun rights and tough-on-crime policies.…”

“…Second, Amaral's analysis (2020) found resentment from the bottom being driven by the Evangelical church, which is popular among the poorest Brazilians and is based on a moralistic rejection of values in favor of the rights of women and LGBTQI+ minorities. Third, Layton et al (2021), as well as Mayka and Smith (2021), have framed the 2018 elections within a broader resurgence of demographic and social divisions in the country. Fourth, Chagas Bastos (2019, p. 96) finds resentment among the military entourage to which Bolsonaro belongs, which was supported by "men who had to live thirty years of resentment for not taking part in the privileges of military power".…”

Esquerda, direita e eleições presidenciais no Brasil

“…Um recente debate na literatura acrescentou à lista de posicionamentos ideológicos a categoria da nova direita, que combinaria ultraliberalismo econômico com uma reação conservadora contra o liberalismo nos costumes e contra o avanço de pautas progressistas (Câmara et al 2020;Cowan, 2014;Cruz;Kaysel;Codas, 2015;Löwy, 2015;Mayka;Smith, 2021;Santos, 2020;Pierucci, 1987;Madeira, 2018;Madeira, 2020;Rocha, 2021;Moddelmog, 2019;Smith, 2019).…”

Anti-Abortion Mobilization in Latin America: Signs of a Field in Transformation

“…Recent studies identified the increased use of grassroots mobilization repertoires by right-wing and neoconservative movements during the conservative shift in the 2010s. Among other themes, such as gun rights, demand for law and order ("mano dura") policies, and anticorruption reforms, the opposition to gender and sexual equality policies is identified as an important trigger of such mobilizations (MAYKA and SMITH, 2021;REUTERSWÄRD, 2021;CORREDOR, 2021;DIAS, VON BÜLOW, and GOBBI, 2021;GOLD and PEÑA, 2021).…”