Public Transportation Riots in São Paulo (2013x20)
Data di messa in onda: Ago 30, 2013
Back in October 2012, we covered a protest staged by the Free Pass Movement (abbreviated as MPL in Portuguese) for the National Free Fare Fight Day in São Paulo, Brazil. Earlier this year, we aired a documentary about the first round of demonstrations, where the MPL warned it was going to bring São Paulo to a halt. Demonstrations this past June started up again after the bus fare went up R$ 0.20 (eight cents) in the city. For a protest called by the MPL on June 6, 2013, thousands of people joined in. Things got out of control after the police reacted to demonstrators who blocked the 23 de Maio Avenue, a major highway in the city. Not really understanding what had happened, a lot of people called the whole movement a group of punks; "vandals" and "troublemakers" were the most common adjectives used to describe the MPL. Trying to use the publicity to become stronger and pressure even more the state and city administrations, the MPL promptly called for a another demonstration.
