Jair Bolsonaro Targets Minorities With Executive Orders

President Jair Bolsonaro appears to be off to a strong start in Brazil.

Undermining the rights of indigenous communities:

“RIO DE JANEIRO — President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, who has compared indigenous communities living in protected lands to animals in zoos, took a major step toward undermining the rights of indigenous people just hours after taking office on Tuesday.

In one of a handful of measures that stand to hurt historically marginalized communities, the incoming government on Tuesday transferred responsibility for certifying indigenous territories as protected lands to the ministry of agriculture. The ministry has traditionally championed the interests of industries that want greater access to protected lands.

The certification was previously overseen by the National Indian Foundation, a government agency tasked with safeguarding the rights and welfare of indigenous communities. …”

Cleaning out the Deep State of communist subversives:

“Brazil’s new president has authorised the dismissal of civil servants who do not share his far-right ideology, it has been reported.

Having taken office this week, Jair Bolsonaro has launched a purge of left-wing government officials with approximately 300 people expected to be dismissed.

Officials who are seen as being supportive of the previous left-wing and centrist governments will be removed to “clean the house”, Mr Bolsonaro’s chief of staff Onyx Lorenzoni said.

“It’s the only way to govern with our ideas, our concepts and to carry out what Brazil’s society decided in its majority,” Mr Lorenzoni said, according to Die Welt.

He added that the vast proportion of those dismissed are on temporary contracts and their removal is necessary to “do away with the Socialist and Communist ideas that during 30 years have led us to the chaos in which we live.” …

Targeting the LGBTQ community:

“Brazil’s new right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro removed concerns regarding the LGBT community from being considered by a new human rights ministry hours after his inauguration, part of a sweeping set of executive orders targeting some minority groups.

Bolsonaro stripped LGBT concerns from the ministry and named no other federal agency to consider such issues, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.

The former military officer and right-wing politician made incendiary comments about race and sexual orientation during his campaign, saying in 2011 that he would be “incapable of loving a homosexual son.” …”

Donald Trump had a similar strong start with executive orders. Then he faded as he plunged into a quagmire of federal court decisions and congressional dysfunction. Will history repeat itself in Brazil?