They even voted on whether to stop the bus for a bathroom break

July 7, 2020 9:58 AM

After two decades of Brazilian military dictatorship, Brazilians were inspired by a football club which made a point of voting on absolutely everything. Socrates and Corinthian Democracy. It was the "greatest team I ever played in because it was more than sport."

It brought, by example, the message of free speech and democracy – of one person, one vote – to millions of Brazilians who had known only repression. People who would never listen to the president listened to Sócrates. “We were poking the bear with a short stick,” he said. “And it was beautiful, because we took it beyond our own horizons to the horizons of the nation and that is what we wanted to do.”

posted by clawsoon (4 comments total)

How wonderful to learn about this. Thank you for sharing.
posted by infini at 11:14 AM on July 7, 2020 [1 favorite]

My second host family when I lived in Brazil were very serious fans -- members of the Gavioes de Fiel, kept a small religious altar for the team next to the television, etc -- so I've always sorta considered myself a fan of the team. Not in a serious way, just that they were the team I watched when I learned to watch Football. I never knew this history about them and I like them more now.
posted by jacquilynne at 12:39 PM on July 7, 2020 [1 favorite]

I didn't hurt Socrates' campaign that he captained one of Brazil's most loved World Cup squads in 1982. It went down to defeat against Italy, but its beautiful play was considered the height of "jogo bonito".
posted by clawsoon at 3:00 PM on July 7, 2020

I hope the votes on bathroom breaks were unanimous consent.
posted by sjswitzer at 4:09 PM on July 7, 2020