Worldwide Peasant Struggles

“The Landless Movement (MST) of Brazil is accused of being a criminal organization. This accusation is part of a strategy to criminalize social protest and popular movements. After weakening the Workers’ Party (PT) of Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff, who he overthrew, Temer now has it aim set on the MST. But we continue to struggle, because this is the only way to defeat the conservative forces and the coup”.

On December 7 and 8, nearly 300 leaders of 100 popular organizations of Brazil gathered to update the political platform of the Popular Brazil Front. The meeting, which was held in Belo Horizonte, was attended by a wide range of sectors of society including youth, peasants, healthcare workers, unions and religious organizations.

Last Thursday, in the framework of the II Continental Assembly of Social Movements Towards the ALBA, the first panel of speakers was led by the representative of the Landless Rural Workers’ Movement (MST) of Brazil, João Pedro Stedile, who offered a master class titled “Political juncture: neoliberalism, neodevelopmentalism and socialism in our continent”.

On Saturday November 12, 2016, about 50 people representing organizations from the Middle East gathered in an act of support and solidarity to the MST in Bethlehem, Palestine.

The organizations rejected the invasion of the Florestan Fernandes National School (ENFF), which took place last November 4th, and the attempted criminalization suffered by the Movement in the states of Paraná and Mato Grosso do Sul.

To denounce the criminalization of popular movements, around a thousand people gathered this Saturday, November 5, 2016 at the National School Florestan Fernandes (ENFF), in Guararema (SP), in solidarity with the Movement of Landless Rural Workers (MST). The act is a response to the truculent action of civilian police, who invaded the school, fired bullets at students and militants, and imprisoned two members of ENFF, on Friday, November 4, 2016.

More than 700,000 people attended the National Day in Defense of Democracy on Thursday (March 31) in several Brazilian cities. The acts were organized by Brazil Popular Front and the People Without Fear, in order to defend democracy against the coup and to fight for a different economic policy.

Montevideo, Latin America, (1940 -2015)

Today we don't have the physical presence of our comrade Eduardo Galeano anymore. Uruguayan from birth, Caribbean and Latin-American by lifestyle choice and by political militancy.

Groups and individuals showed their support and solidarity to João Pedro Stédile after he received death threats

Art  by Pavel Eguez, the great muralist from Ecuador,  in solidarity with Stedile.

European Committees of Friends of the MST met from October 24 to 26, 2014 in Mondoñedo, Galicia, Spain. Representatives from FMST Committees of Germany, Portugal, Norway, Sweden, Belgium and Galicia, Basque Country and Catalonia in Spain met for their bi-annual meeting. Sending their regards, but unable to attend, were the committees from Italy and Finland.

Ana Chã, a member of the MST’s Culture Collective, gave two presentations on the role of culture in social movements, particularly the MST. On August 11, 2014, in the Bay Area, she addressed cultural workers at Occupy the Farm in Albany, CA. Read more and view photos.

In New York City, on August 13, 2014,  Ana gave a presentation on thesame topic with an emphasis on mística to a gathering at a collective space in lower Manhattan. Read more and view photos.

On August 8, 2014, the Uri-Eichen Gallery in Chicago’s Mexican neighborhood of Pilsen hosted artwork and presentations on the MST and the rise of new democracy in Canoas, Brazil. MST posters, original oil paintings by Aliene de Souza Howell and products of worker’s cooperatives were all displayed in the gallery. Read more and view photos.