Liquefaction of the Social Protection Network in Brazil

Abstract

What are the impacts of the austerity reforms on the social protection network and the
legacy of Social Security, enshrined in the 1988 Constitution? The hypothesis of this
article is that Brazil's recent political economy demonstrates the antinomy between
financial capitalism and representative mass democracy, which results in the corrosion
of social protection policies and the regulation of capital / labor relations. The political
economy is being immunized against democratic grassroots pressure in a clear dispute
over public funds and the growing commodification and deregulation of lucrative
private activities in the social protection arena. This movement is favored by the
existence of a political and electoral system that perpetuates the conservative elites of
various shades in a reactionary coalition that hinders the progress made in the expansion
of citizenship and economic, cultural and social rights. Through national and
international studies, as well as the analysis of political measures, we seek to justify this
hypothesis.