Oh, how we missed the normal days…

Tensions, putschist chants, angry far-right demonstrators and a president who, although democratically elected, used a national celebration to promote political strife and call for a return to periods when democracy was silenced.

Strange as it may seem, these were the elements that made up the bicentennial of Brazil’s independence, celebrated just one year ago. Despite the 200th anniversary of its emancipation from Portugal, Brazil was on edge last year because of the Trump-like leadership of former President Jair Bolsonaro, whose hijacking of the Independence Day holiday on September 7 became a symbol of his presidency.

When Mr. Bolsonaro was defeated at the ballot box last year, failing to win four more years in office, many people commented that perhaps things would be able to return to “normal.” Straightforward and humdrum days like Brazil’s Independence Day used to be, with traditional speeches and military parades that few people cared to watch.

Well, this year, that wish came came true, a turnaround symbolized by the main star of this year’s event (and also by the fact that pro-Bolsonaro supporters decided to boycott Independence Day altogether): instead of putting military pageantry or remnants of the dictatorship center stage, the star of this year’s celebrations was Zé Gotinha, the mascot of the Brazilian public vaccination network.

Zé Gotinha, we should say, was indeed the real star during the pandemic, preventing thousands of Covid deaths — while the anti-vaccine crew did their best to disrupt.

So relax, President Lula. After you finish your presidential duties, you can take off the shirt and tie and relax for a while. At least for now, normal days are back in Brazil.

Read more here, and check out the full creation of this cartoon on The Brazilian Report’s TikTok (@brazilianreport) account!

• #independence
• #jairBolsonaro
• #lula