First Protester Dies as Brazil Protests Reach 1 Million People
A teenager was killed when a Jeep slammed into a crowd of demonstrators in Brazil last night, but that hasn't dampened the anti-government protests that have taken over the country. Estimates say that more one million people took to the streets in more than 100 cities, with the largest march in Rio de Janiero, where more than 300,000 people took part. Brazil's president, Dilma Rousseff, called for an emergency cabinet meeting to develop a response to protests that have been raging for more than a week.
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As the demonstrations have grown, so has the violence, not just between the protestors and the police — who have deployed tear gas and rubber bullets in some instances — but among the people. The driver who killed the 18-year-old and injured several others in Riberao Preto was allegedly attempting to break up the crowd on his own. And brawls have broken out as some groups of protesters attempted to stop other groups from vandalizing businesses and throwing rocks at police.
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REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes
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The government has agreed to some concessions, including rolling back the transit-fare hikes that initially sparked the protests. But the larger grievances — corruption and the massive amounts of public money being spent on two major soccer events and the 2016 Olympics — are unlikely to go away. The country has no plans to back out of its sporting commitments, obviously, so as soccer stadiums continue to be built while poor people suffer (and pay for them) then protesters will have their cause.
AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano
