The Effect Of Violence On Democracy In Brazil Essay

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Chapter Overview CHAPTER 2: VIOLENCE, LIFE, AND BRASILIDADE Democracy and the Public Sphere Violence in Brazil Planting the Seeds of a Criminal Life Combating Violence Through State Action The Police The Judicial System The Penal System Government Reforms The Cost and Impact of Violence Reactions and their Consequences Governmental Action Conclusion: Brazilian Democracy in Peril CHAPTER 3: THE VIOLENT LEGACY OF PATRIMONIALISM Patrimonialism The Rationalizing State and Capitalism Social and Economic Inequality The Mutability of Brazilian Institutions Citizenship, Representation, and Patterns of Sociability Violent Sites: The Rural and the Urban Violence: The State and Police Conclusion

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CHAPTER 4: THE PRECARIOUS NATURE OF DOMESTIC SECURITY IN BRAZIL54 Historical Perspectives on Violence 55 History, Race, and the Prevalence of Violence 58 The Myth of a Racial Democracy 63 The Complexities of Race and Violence 65 Extralegal and Racial Misunderstanding 68 Civil Rights Paradigms and the Brazilian Reality 69 The Response of the Brazilian State: A Plan for Action? 74 Conclusions and the Future 76 CHAPTER 5: VIOLENCE AND THE BATTLE FOR BRAZIL’S FUTURE i 79

Armed Forces as a Policing Alternative The State’s Budgetary Response and Reformation Conclusion CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION CHAPTER 7: REFERENCE CITED

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ABSTRACT

This thesis looks at the nature of violence with its endemic, and increasingly epidemic presence in Brazil. I analyze the structure of the justice system, police force, and the many governmental security programs in order to better explain why Brazil is so violent and its government has been unable to control this violence. Living under violent conditions, Brazil has become a society where the efficient functioning of the public sphere has been undermined. This public space, shared by citizens, is what...