Brazilian academics ‘gaslighted’ in swirl of policy rumours

Much of this would be challenged successfully In the courts because the threatened measures are unconstitutional. The real threat is budgetary: this government will intentionally run down public universities and most likely switch resources to private ones many of which are commercial profit making concerns of dubious quality. Academics can and possibly already do expect to be the object of scurrilous political accusations and to have their classes infiltrated by hostile ‘students’. Millions of Brazilians have been persuaded that public universities or hotbeds of ‘cultural Marxism’ Which indoctrinates people with the promotion of gay and lesbian lifestyles and “gender ideology”.

Much of this would be challenged successfully In the courts because the threatened measures are unconstitutional. The real threat is budgetary: this government will intentionally run down public universities and most likely switch resources to private ones many of which are commercial profit making concerns of dubious quality. Academics can and possibly already do expect to be the objects of scurrilous political accusations and to have their classes infiltrated by hostile ‘students’. Millions of Brazilians have been persuaded that public universities or hotbeds of ‘cultural Marxism’ Which indoctrinates people by promoting gay and lesbian lifestyles and “gender ideology”.

Much ado about nothing. I am surprised that academics take the content of this hoax as true. This discussion was triggered by a blog post by a not mainstream journalist in O Globo website. No source cited. No evidence provided. There are much worse real problems to be faced by Brazilian academics in the near future. The new Education Minister explicitly mentioned in his speech of inauguration that he aims to eradicate "cultural Marxism" and "gender ideology" from Brazilian universities. Both concepts are part of conspiracy theories and have no meaning in the real world. Most Secretaries of the Ministry were occupied by scholars of no academic relevance (like the Minister himself) but well aligned with the empty raging ideology of Brazilian right wing icon Olavo de Carvalho. Let us fight real rather than imaginary battles.