Discovering South America: Brazil

A Legacy of Inequality 25

2002, they elected Workers’ Party candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to the presidency in the largest landslide in Brazilian history. During his two terms as president (2003 – 2010) Lula tried to fight poverty, malnutrition and under-education through large-scale public-works pro- jects. When Lula left office, he was considered one of the most popular presidents in Brazil’s history. Dilma Rousseff, Lula’s chief of staff from 2005 to 2010, made history by becoming the first woman elected president of Brazil in October 2010. She took office on January 1, 2011. Rousseff maintained many of Lula’s eco- nomic and social programs during her first term. She has also pushed for the government to complete a number of controversial hydroelectric dams in the Amazon River basin.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Despite some improvements in recent years, Brazil continues to have many social problems. Among them are widespread poverty, a fragile health care system, urban overcrowding, and environmental issues. In 2013, some Brazilians began to protest against the high cost of public transportation. This eventually grew into a series of protests throughout the country, with demon- strators angry about many problems and issues. Despite this, Rousseff was elected to a second term as president in October 2014.

TEXT-DEPENDENT QUESTIONS 1. What ruler declared Brazil’s independence in 1822? 2. What Brazilian president modernized the country during his rule from 1930 to 1954?