I tried to forward this Intercept email to the list and I can't. Now I've
copied it and we'll see if it will leave my computer.
Yesterday, I was physically attacked by a right-wing journalist during a live
broadcast in São Paulo, Brazil. The incident has made headlines all over the
world, but it wasn’t an isolated one.
Our whole team here in Brazil is under constant threat from a fascist political
movement backing far-right President Jair Bolsonaro that wants to intimidate us
into silence.
That threat is escalating severely as a result of events today in Brazil, where
a Supreme Court judge has just ordered former President Luiz Inácio Lula da
Silva, Bolsonaro’s chief political rival, to be released from prison.
So I want to explain what happened, what’s at stake, and why we need Intercept
readers’ help in this critical moment.
The journalist who attacked me is the former editor-in-chief of Brazil’s
largest newsweekly who has become a pro-Bolsonaro activist.
He has publicly called for a judge to investigate my family, suggesting that my
children should be removed from my home and returned to the shelter from which
my husband and I adopted them.
His homophobic rhetoric obviously exceeds the bounds of propriety, but I agreed
to appear alongside him on a right-wing radio show because I believe that it’s
crucial in any democracy, especially one as polarized as Brazil, to have
political dialogue with your adversaries.
I wanted the opportunity to discuss with him why he would say something so
inappropriate. Instead, he physically assaulted me — and Bolsonaro supporters,
including the president’s own son, reacted with applause.
Our team at The Intercept Brasil has lived with the threat of violence ever
since we published documents that revealed serious, systematic, and sustained
improprieties by the Brazilian judicial officials who imprisoned Lula.
Bolsonaro himself has publicly threatened me with prison, and we’ve had to make
expensive investments in our digital, physical, and legal safety so that our
staff can continue doing this groundbreaking and impactful work.
Lula may be leaving prison today, but our work is not complete. We have many
more exposés to publish.
The Intercept is a nonprofit news organization, which means that you are our
most important stakeholder. Your donation keeps our fierce independent
reporting alive and helps us challenge far-right authoritarian leaders like
Jair Bolsonaro. We’re counting on our readers to make sure we can continue this
fearless coverage.
Support our team in this critical moment.
CONTRIBUTE →
Glenn Greenwald
Co-founding Editor of The Intercept
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