Brazil’s political leaders heading for history’s backdoor

Brazilian voters dished out a big slap on the face of the political establishment. They said no to politics as usual, to the same old names. I could be wrong, of course, but I see the choice for Jair Bolsonaro as more of a desperate attempt to shake things up, rather than a conscious choice in favor of fascism.

Yes, Brazil is a society haunted by structural racism, gender inequality, and class prejudice. But a vote for a man who wants to wreck the system feels more like a cry for help from the majority of his electorate – excluding his extreme supporters, who have meted out attacks on minorities over the past few days.

It is a regrettable choice. Mr. Bolsonaro would be the first to tell you he doesn’t know a thing about the economy. He plans to hand the wheel over to an ultra-libertarian economist being investigated for fraud and with shady interests in the government.

Mr. Bolsonaro has said women are not deserving of the same salaries as men, that some black communities are not even good for breeding. Yet he’s still managing to poll high among those groups.

And that’s because people are simply repulsed by the establishment. Which is understandable.

Brazil has one of the top 10 economies in the world. But people in some regions live in medieval-like conditions, with little to no access to clean water or public sanitation. Meanwhile, the country sees over 62,000 reported murders per year – our murder rate is three...