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João Berchmans Correia Serra, Sen. Aloysio Nunes Ferreira, Sen. Raimundo Lira, and Miguel Reale Júnior converse during Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment hearings. THE PATRIARCHY’S REVENGE: HOW RETRO-MACHO hen Dilma Rousseff, Brazil’s first female POLITICS DOOMED president, took the stand in August 2016 at the conclusion of the impeach- Wment trial that removed her from office, DILMA ROUSSEFF she minced no words about the role gender played in her downfall: “There are certain ele- OMAR G. ENCARNACIÓN ments of machismo and misogyny in this im- peachment … I have always been described as a hard woman. Yet I have never heard a man

GERALDO MAGELA/AGÊNCIA SENADO MAGELA/AGÊNCIA GERALDO described as a hard man.”

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Brazilian politicians and media drowned the case in Brazil, a country that is more so- out Rousseff’s accusations of sexism with other cially conservative than its international repu- explanations for her predicament. She presid- tation for freewheeling sexuality would lead ed over the worst economy in Brazil since the one to believe. The same can be said about the 1930s, with 7.5 percent GDP growth in 2010 United States, where Donald J. Trump, a no- plummeting to a 3.8 percent contraction in torious misogynist, was elected president run- 2015. Her Workers’ Party, or PT, was mired in ning against former Secretary of State Hillary corruption scandals, many of them involving Clinton, the first female major-party presiden- Petrobras, the semi-state-owned oil company. tial nominee in U.S. history. In addition, Rousseff’s foes in Congress accused her of breaking budgetary laws. Her approval PATRIARCHAL VESTIGES ratings dropped to single digits, the lowest on It may seem strange to suggest Rousseff’s gen- record since the last time Brazil impeached a der as a primary cause for her political demise president, Fernando Collor de Mello, in 1992. given the success of women in politics in Lat- Yet a compelling case can be made for in America. After all, the first woman to rise Rousseff becoming a victim of “retro-macho to the presidency of any country was a Latin politics.” Deeply rooted in Latin American his- American woman, Isabel Martínez de Perón, tory, the notion of retro-macho politics evokes who in 1974 became the president of Argen- the enduring influence of a patriarchal social tina, following the death of her husband, Presi- order shaped by such male-dominated bas- dent Juan Domingo Perón. Since then, Latin tions of political and economic power as the America has had eight women presidents— Catholic Church, the landed oligarchy, the mil- four of them since 2006. Moreover, according itary, and, most prominently, the so-called cau- to the U.N.’s Women in Politics Survey, 27.7 dillos, or the strongmen that, since the end of percent of all Latin American parliamentarians Iberian colonial rule, have so often dominated are women, the second-highest percentage of the region’s politics. any region, behind only Northern Europe. The A backlash against the empowerment of recent surge in female legislators is largely due women and people of color in recent years, retro- to gender quota systems, pioneered by Argen- macho politics is characterized by swashbuck- tina in the early 1990s. ling masculinity, overt sexism, and misogyny. But the advances that female politicians In the short term, retro-macho politics seeks to have made in the region are not reflected in curry favor with a segment of the electorate that Brazil, which shows more patriarchal vestiges professes to be fed up with political correctness. than any other major Latin American coun- In the long term, the intention is to roll back the try. Despite a 2009 gender quota law requiring progress that women have already made and to that 30 percent of all political candidates be undo the policies that female leaders tend to female, only 10 percent of seats in the Brazil- champion in areas such as reproductive health, ian Congress are occupied by women, accord- affirmative action, and human rights. ing to the World Bank. This ratio places Brazil Retro-macho politics plays well with the dead last in Latin America and well behind the public because sexism and misogyny still reso- region’s leaders: Bolivia (53 percent), Cuba (49 nate within the culture at large. This is clearly percent), Mexico (42 percent), Ecuador (42

OMAR G. ENCARNACIÓN is a professor of political studies at Bard College and the author of “Out in the Periph- ery: Latin America’s Gay Rights Revolution” (Oxford University Press, 2016).

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percent), and Argentina (36 percent). In fact, the current president of Chile. Instead, Rousseff, Brazil ranks among the worst nations in the the daughter of a Bulgarian immigrant and a world when it comes to female representation Brazilian school teacher raised in a middle-class in politics—155th, according to the Inter-Parlia- family in Belo Horizonte, followed a route to mentary Union, behind the likes of Saudi Ara- power more typical of male presidents in Latin bia and North Korea. America. She began as a left-wing radical and Not surprisingly, Brazilian social laws are political prisoner and then had a high-profile among the most conservative in Latin America. career in government—not that bootstrapping While abortion laws have recently been liber- her way to the presidency spared Rousseff from alized in several Latin American countries—in- the patriarchy’s wrath. cluding Uruguay, Argentina, and Mexico—this While in her early 20s, Rousseff joined the is not the case in Brazil. Abortion remains Comandos de Libertação Nacional, or the Na- largely illegal, but about 1 million procedures tional Liberation Command, a Marxist guerilla are still performed each year. Women who dare organization that tried to topple the military to break the law are subject to jail terms rang- dictatorship in place from 1964 to 1985. The ing from one to three years, and doctors who precise role Rousseff played within the group perform abortions can face 20-year sentences. is disputed, with some accounts depicting her Prosecutions are uncommon, but reports of as the organization’s mastermind while others women being interrogated by the police from downplay her leadership role. But she was im- a hospital bed after a botched abortion are not. plicated in the 1969 theft of a safe belonging Brazil also lags behind its neighbors when to Ademar de Barros, the former governor of it comes to gay rights. Unlike Mexico, Argen- São Paulo. The heist netted the National Lib- tina, and Chile, there are no federal laws or eration Command some $3 million. For her constitutional provisions protecting against “subversive activities,” Rousseff was captured anti-gay discrimination in Brazil. Indeed, rare in 1970, sent to prison, and tortured. Accord- among Latin American nations, Brazil has yet ing to state records, military officers applied to pass a single gay rights bill at the federal lev- electric shocks to her breasts, forced her into el. Where progress has been made, it has been the parrot’s perch (an excruciating position in imposed by the judiciary; same-sex marriage, which the victim is suspended between two for instance, was legalized in 2011 by the Fed- metal platforms), and punched her in the face eral Supreme Court in a decision currently be- with enough force to cause permanent damage ing challenged by Congress. to her teeth. Rousseff was released in 1972, and, a year BOOTSTRAPPING HER WAY TO POWER later, she attended Rio Grande do Sul Federal Despite male dominance in the political sphere, University, earning a degree in economics. Soon Rousseff rose to the highest office in Brazil, and thereafter, she entered politics in the state of she did so without some of the advantages of Rio Grande do Sul, eventually becoming the other female presidents in Latin America. She city of Porto Alegre’s secretary of the treasury was not a presidential widow, like Martínez de and later Rio Grande do Sul’s secretary of en- Perón, or a former first lady, like Cristina Fernán- ergy. In 2003, she joined the administration of dez de Kirchner, Argentina’s second female pres- Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as the energy minister, ident. Nor did Rousseff hail from a political dy- and, after a series of corruption scandals led to nasty, like Nicaragua’s Violeta de Chamorro, or the resignation of several Cabinet members, be- from a prominent family, like Michelle Bachelet, came Lula’s chief of staff in 2005.

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Unable to run for a third consecutive term, future, free of authoritarian threats,” she said Lula handpicked Rousseff to be his successor. in her remarks. The audience responded with a Her candidacy benefited from Lula’s popular- standing ovation. ity—he left office in 2011 with an almost 80 The second law was a freedom of infor- percent approval rating. As far as the patriar- mation act that created tools to unearth and chy is concerned, capitalizing on Lula’s success tackle corruption. The Federal Police’s ongoing was Rousseff’s original sin. Despite her many anti-corruption dragnet known as Operação Lava accomplishments—including getting elected Jato (Operation Car Wash), which so far has im- president—many of Rousseff’s opponents dis- plicated some 60 percent of Brazil’s Congress, counted her as “Lula’s puppet,” someone Lula is a direct product of this law. Rousseff’s com- had plucked from obscurity as a nod to political mitment to the investigation for the most part correctness. She was, therefore, unfit to lead. was commendable. A report in Americas Quar- This sexist and condescending view of Rousseff terly notes that many in Rousseff’s inner circle would haunt her presidency and color the im- advised her to shut down the probe or to try peachment process. to undermine it by firing the director, Márcio Anselmo, after he breached protocol by discuss- EARNING THE PATRIARCHY’S ENMITY During Rousseff’s first three years in office, she remained well liked, with approval ratings hov- ering around 60 percent. Surveys at the time THOSE WHO LED ROUSSEFF’S had her coasting to re-election in 2014. Much of Rousseff’s early popularity stemmed from IMPEACHMENT WERE her reputation as a clean politician with a zeal THEMSELVES ACCUSED OF for political reform. During her first year in of- fice, in 2011, Rousseff enacted two landmark CORRUPTION. laws that bolstered her popularity but earned her the enmity of the patriarchy. The first law created the National Truth ing details with the media. Instead, Rousseff Commission to chronicle the abuses of the mili- asserted the autonomy of the federal investiga- tary dictatorship. Fearing retribution, the mili- tors, telling Folha de S. Paulo, “Brazil needs this tary had long opposed any investigation into its investigation.” She added that even the mighti- crimes. For years, this made Brazil an anomaly est should be held accountable. She appeared among South American nations, almost all of to reverse this position when Lula, her former which had already established some form of mentor, was indicted on corruption charges. In official inquiry into their dictatorship periods. March 2016, she appointed Lula chief of staff, Three years in the making, the Commission’s effectively shielding him from prosecution by final 2,000-page report found that thousands any body but the Supreme Court. of Brazilians were brutalized by the military, Rousseff’s fortunes shifted in June 2013, including at least 500 who were killed or disap- when millions took to the streets to protest the peared. In December 2014, during the official construction of expensive sports facilities for the presentation of the document, Rousseff broke 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Rio Olympics down in tears as she recalled her own torture. and to call for improved health services, educa- “The work of this commission increases the tional opportunities, and public transportation. possibility for Brazil to have a fully democratic She won re-election in 2014 by 3.2 percentage

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points in the second round of voting, but, with that was leaked to the press, Temer sounded the economy reeling and an outbreak of the like a jilted lover: “I know that you do not trust mosquito-borne Zika virus threatening to derail me and the PMDB today, and I know you won’t the Olympics, the protests grew larger and loud- tomorrow. I am sorry, but this is my convic- er. It would not be long before the demonstra- tion.” Temer also likened himself to a “Christ- tors began calling for Rousseff’s resignation and mas ornament,” because of his absence from her enemies began plotting her ouster. the decision-making process. Among the conspirators was Rousseff’s own Eduardo Cunha, speaker of the Chamber of vice president, Michel Temer, of the Brazilian Deputies, was another plotter. His rise to the Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), a party speakership after the 2014 elections signaled to the right of the PT. The PMDB is the largest the ascent of the so-called “beef, bullets, and of the three dozen parties represented in the Bible” caucus, the male-dominated cluster of Brazilian Congress, and was a coalition part- legislators representing the interests of agri- ner in the Rousseff government. It appears that cultural barons, security forces, and evangeli- Temer—a 76-year-old constitutional lawyer cal churches. Like many in the caucus, Cunha married to a former beauty queen 43 years his thought of Rousseff as merely a placeholder junior—was never at ease with having a female for Lula until his expected return to power in boss. In a 2015 letter from Temer to Rousseff 2018. Cunha also resented Rousseff for her

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refusal to come to his aid when he faced alle- It is also richly ironic that those who led gations of ethical violations in 2015. Federal Rousseff’s impeachment were themselves ac- prosecutors accused him of lying about hold- cused of corruption, including allegations of us- ings of more than $20 million in secret bank ing public funds to enrich themselves, a charge accounts abroad. The Federal Supreme Court Rousseff has never faced. Cunha was the first forced him to resign as speaker in July 2016. casualty of Operation Car Wash. As vice presi- dent, Temer was answerable for the “crimes” DOUBLE STANDARDS of the Rousseff administration. But beyond In December 2015, Cunha accepted an im- that responsibility, he is also fending off claims peachment petition, kick-starting a months- that he accepted millions in bribes channeled long process that concluded with a Senate vote through Petrobras. Senator Romero Jucá, the in September 2016 to depose Rousseff (61 in head of the PMDB, is accused of accepting busi- favor and 20 against). With this decision, Vice ness kickbacks linked to Petrobras. During the President Temer became president, ending the impeachment, Folha de S. Paulo also released a PT’s 13-year rule. Rousseff’s offense was using secret recording where Jucá implied that get- funds from the Central Bank to conceal a bud- ting rid of Rousseff was intended to “staunch get deficit before the 2014 election. She reim- the bleeding”—i.e., shut down the corruption bursed the bank after the vote. Such a budgetary probe and save everyone from jail. Despite the practice, referred to in Brazil as pedaladas fiscais, embarrassing revelations, Jucá kept his Senate or fiscal pedaling, was made illegal in 2000 to seat and voted to oust Rousseff. prevent hyperinflation, which Brazil endured In response to the charges laid against her, throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. Rousseff argued that among the Brazilian po- The charge against Rousseff smacked of litical class, she stood out as the cleanest and sexism. Brazil’s previous two presidents, Fer- least corrupt. “I have no secret bank accounts nando Henrique Cardoso and Lula, had en- abroad. I have never taken a cent from the pub- gaged in the same budgetary tricks after the lic treasury. I received no bribes from anyone,” “anti-pedaling” law was passed, and neither she said when testifying in front of the Senate. was penalized. Moreover, as many have con- She also sought to portray herself as the victim tended, the charge against Rousseff did not of a coup, a comparison that tied the fate of her merit impeachment. According to Paulo Iotti, presidency to historical cases of right-wing forc- an expert in Brazilian constitutional law at es hounding their adversaries, such as the mili- Lawyers for Sexual and Gender Diversity, a tary overthrow of leftist President João Goulart São Paulo-based NGO, “Rousseff’s impeach- in 1964. The difference between now and then, ment was a parliamentary coup, because the Rousseff told the Senate, “is that constitutional conduct that Dilma was accused of does not pretexts lend the appearance of legitimacy to a rise to ‘crimes of responsibility,’ which are the government taking power without support from only crimes that justify removal of a popularly the ballot box.” elected president.” When the members of the Chamber of Depu- A MODERN-DAY WITCH TRIAL ties lined up one by one to justify their impeach- To compare the Rousseff impeachment trial to ment vote, fiddling with the budget was rarely a witch trial, with the sexist imagery and fear of mentioned. Instead, the legislators said they were powerful women this metaphor conveys, is not voting to “save the country,” “end communism,” to overstate the point. The most indelible scene and “restore the foundations of Christianity.” from the impeachment process came after the

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Chamber of Deputies, a body in which women demonstrators hailed the besieged president occupy only 51 out of 513 seats, voted to initi- as “the Joan of Arc of Brazil,” often while hold- ate impeachment proceedings. A mob of red- ing up a photo of a young Rousseff being in- faced legislators, nearly all male and white, terrogated by military officers. Elsewhere, anti- brandished placards that read “Tchau Querida,” Rousseff protesters described the president as or “good-bye, darling.” a vagabunda (slut) and a puta (whore). At one Rousseff’s tormentor-in-chief in the Chamber “anti-Dilma” event in the northeastern city of of Deputies was Jair Bolsonaro—a Rio de Janeiro Natal, Jaufran Siqueira, a conservative politi- congressman, potential presidential contender, cian running for town councilor, held a picture former officer under the military dictatorship, of a house engulfed by flames and observed, and a man the magazine The Intercept has called “This is what will happen to feminists when “the most misogynistic, hateful, elected official in Jaufran is elected”—an image he also posted to the democratic world.” In 2014, Bolsonaro told his campaign’s Facebook page. He later clari- Congresswoman Maria do Rosário on the floor fied that he was joking. of the Chamber that “she was not worth raping.” Rosário had just condemned the military dicta- CHEERING FOR IMPEACHMENT torship for its sexual abuse of women. In 2011, Brazil’s highly concentrated media (most out- Playboy reported that Bolsonaro said, “I would lets are owned by a handful of families with ties rather my child die than be gay, because I would to the political class) served as cheerleader to be incapable of loving a gay son.” In a 2016 inter- those leading the impeachment by amplifying view with The New York Times, Bolsonaro called the sexist attacks on Rousseff. An article from Syrian refugees and Haitian immigrants coming Época titled “Dilma and Sex,” which has since to Brazil “the scum of the world.” been deleted from the magazine’s website, When casting his impeachment vote, Bolso- faulted Rousseff for failing to “eroticize herself naro managed to combine his misogyny with his for the public.” She “eliminated her erotic side fondness for military rule. He dedicated his bal- by wearing clothes that conceal her sexiness lot to Carlos Alberto Ustra, whom he called, “the and wearing shoes without laces and no visible Dread of Dilma Rousseff.” Ustra was the colonel jewelry,” the article noted. Brazil’s best-selling in charge of the notorious DOI-CODI, the unit weekly, Veja (comparable to Time or News- of the military responsible for torturing politi- week), contrasted Rousseff to Marcela Temer, cal dissidents, including Rousseff herself, during the 33-year-old wife of Vice President Temer. It the dictatorship. Prompted by this praise for a praised Mrs. Temer as “beautiful, maiden-like, reviled torturer, Jean Wyllys, an openly gay con- and a housewife.” The magazine also heralded gressman from Rio de Janeiro, spit on Bolsonaro. the prospect that “Brazil would once again have In retaliation, Bolsonaro’s son, Congressman a First Lady.” Eduardo Bolsonaro, then spit on Wyllys. Jair Bol- A widely discussed cover story from IstoÉ sonaro is currently facing an investigation by the (This is It) played on sexist stereotypes of wom- Congress’s ethics committee, accused of break- en as emotional, unstable, and hysterical, and ing parliamentary decorum by casting his im- thus unable to govern. It claimed that Rousseff peachment vote in Ustra’s honor. had “successive nervous explosions” and dem- As the Congress debated Rousseff’s politi- onstrated “a complete disconnect with reality.” cal fate, anti-Rousseff and pro-Rousseff rallies Without any evidence, the article stated that erupted in major Brazilian cities. Both sides Rousseff was taking prescription drugs given to emphasized Rousseff’s gender. Pro-Rousseff patients suffering from schizophrenia and that

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she was physically abusive toward her staff. The favor of the first democratically elected female article even drew parallels between Rousseff president’s democratic legitimacy.” and Queen Mary I of Portugal and Brazil, better- The charges from Brazilian feminists and known as Maria a Louca, or Mary the Mad, who other opponents of the impeachment process went insane in the early 19th century toward were echoed abroad. Nadine Gasman, head of the end of her nearly 40-year reign. U.N. Women, said in a March 2016 statement, These media stories reinforced a long histo- “As a defender of women’s and girls’ rights ry of sexist and misogynistic attitudes directed around the world, U.N. Women condemns all toward Rousseff. From the moment she entered forms of violence against women, including the the national stage as Lula’s chief of staff, Brazil- ians thought her age (68 at the time of her im- peachment), short hair, and professional attire were an affront to conventional Brazilian stan- MUCH LIKE TEMER HIMSELF, dards of femininity, which emphasize youth, flowing locks, and voluptuous features. For the THE NEW CABINET IS media, Rousseff’s status as an unmarried divor- cée supported the view that she was aggressive PLAGUED BY SCANDAL. and lacked sex appeal. Like many other female politicians, Rousseff has also been criticized for being too serious, being too much of a wonk, political violence of a sexist nature directed and lacking charisma. against President Dilma Rousseff.” In July 2016, As Rousseff’s popularity nosedived, Brazil- 40 members of the U.S. Congress, all Demo- ians expressed their disapproval in a variety crats, wrote to Secretary of State John Kerry of sexist ways. One popular sticker of Rousseff expressing “strong concern over the impeach- depicted her with her legs spread apart, which ment process targeting President Rousseff.” This many Brazilians put on their cars around their was the first time in over two decades that a gas tank openings so that every time they filled congressional letter expressed concern about their vehicles they also sexually penetrated her. the state of Brazilian democracy. This type of grotesque treatment highlighted Brazil’s infamous rape culture (according to a THE PATRIARCHY STRIKES BACK study by the Brazilian NGO Forum for Public Upon his inauguration as interim president, Te- Security, a woman is raped in the country, on mer appointed a Cabinet that was exclusively average, every 11 minutes) and stirred the Bra- male and white and, according to the daily O zilian feminist movement into action. Globo, dominated by “heirs of the old lineages of Even though many Brazilian feminists had Brazilian political caciques.” Rousseff’s Cabinet, in been critical of Rousseff for backtracking on her contrast, had been a quarter female. When Te- promise to push for abortion rights, they rallied mer unveiled his all-male Cabinet, it unleashed a behind her and denounced the misogyny un- social media firestorm. A tweet from the newspa- leashed by the impeachment. Sociologist Maria per Jornal O Dia noted: “Temer’s is the first Cabi- Betânia Ávila, a member of Articulação de Mul- net since military dictatorship without women.” heres Brasileiras (Movement of Brazilian Wom- The new Cabinet is also uniformly white in a en), struck a chord with many readers of the country where, according to the 2010 census, blog Teoria e Debate (Theory and Debate) when 51 percent of the public identifies as black or she called on Brazilian women to “mobilize in mixed race. And, much like Temer himself, the

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new Cabinet is plagued by scandal. At the time or “Being female without fear,” a clever play of their appointment, 15 of the 23 new members on the word “temer,” which translates to “fear” were under criminal investigation for corruption. in Portuguese. Temer also appointed one of Brazil’s most conservative female politicians, Fátima Pelaes, RESONANCE BEYOND BRAZIL as secretary for women’s affairs. Pelaes has Rousseff’s downfall has parallels elsewhere, publicly stated that she will not support any such as in Hillary Clinton’s failure to become policy that “goes against biblical values.” While the first woman to lead the U.S. Her opponent, hers was formerly a Cabinet-level position, President Donald Trump, can hardly be accused Pelaes’ appointment came with a demotion af- of concealing his hatred for women. Prior to en- ter Temer collapsed the Ministries of Women, tering politics, he was already known to refer Racial Equality, and Human Rights into the to women as “dogs,” “pigs,” and “slobs.” In the Ministry of Justice. This was rationalized as a infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape recording means of saving taxpayer money. Alexandre de that nearly derailed his presidential dreams, Moraes, the new minister of justice, is the for- Trump boasted that he enjoyed grabbing wom- mer minister for public security for the state of en by their genitals and kissing them without São Paulo. Moraes’ appointment has been met their consent. “When you are a star, they let with trepidation by most civil society organiza- you do anything,” he said. tions. In his former position, he faced criticism Sexism and misogyny were on full display for the police’s excessive use of force. Accord- during the campaign. Trump constantly raised ing to El País, in 2015 alone, the São Paulo po- the threat of the menacing female to draw male lice killed 798 people—more than two per day. voters away from Clinton. On the campaign Many of Temer’s proposed policies consti- trail, he referred to Clinton as “the devil,” and tute an attack on women. He wants to cut so- in the town-hall-style debate, Trump stalked cial security benefits, reduce maternity leave, Clinton around the stage like a predatory ani- and downscale Mais Medicos (More Doctors), mal. In a later debate, he called Clinton “a nas- a Rousseff administration program that paid ty woman.” All of this gave license to millions for 20,000 health professionals (most of them of Trump’s followers to attack Clinton in vile Cuban nationals) to work in high-poverty ar- ways. Trump campaign merchandise included eas. He has already gutted a law enacted under “Trump that Bitch” T-shirts and coffee mugs Rousseff that granted domestic workers—pre- adorned with Clinton flying on a broomstick. dominantly Afro-Brazilian women—the same Trump also suggested that Clinton’s gender ren- labor protections as the rest of society. Te- dered her incapable of governing, noting that mer’s rise has encouraged talks in Congress of Clinton did not look presidential, that she could removing the rape exception to the abortion not command the respect of military generals, ban and of weakening the Maria da Penha law, and that she lacked stamina. a 2006 law intended to increase the number of Trump is on track to pursue the most anti- domestic violence convictions. woman agenda of any American president in Reacting to his all-male Cabinet and sexist decades. During the campaign, he stated that policies, women have started to chain them- women should be punished for having abor- selves to barriers surrounding the presidential tions, and in a post-election 60 Minutes inter- palace in Brasilia to denounce Temer, whom view, he vowed to appoint judges who will over- they refer to as “the coup president.” A recurring turn Roe v. Wade. His running mate, Mike Pence, chant in the protests is “Ser mulher sem Temer,” signed a bill in the state of Indiana (eventually

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ruled unconstitutional) that forced women to affirmative action for Afro-Brazilians and in- arrange for burial services for miscarried and digenous peoples, extended labor rights to do- aborted fetuses. Trump’s promise to replace the mestic workers, and promoted gender equality Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, oth- in development by ensuring that payments in erwise known as Obamacare, will leave millions a cash transfer welfare program were directed of women without access to contraceptives. toward women. There’s also the “Dilma ef- Temer and Trump make for a convincing fect,” or the impact she had simply by bring- case that women’s advances in the political ing more women into government. She named arena triggered the rise of retro-macho politics women to three of the most powerful Cabinet in two of the world’s largest and most diverse positions, including chief of staff, and she ap- democracies. Less apparent, perhaps, is that pointed the first female head of Petrobras and retro-macho politics is a backlash against the the first female admiral. During her tenure, a perceived “feminization” of politics more gener- woman became chief justice of the Federal Su- ally. While at the helm of the State Department, preme Court. And she always proudly referred Clinton promoted “the Hillary Doctrine,” which to herself as “A Presidenta” rather than the asserts that the equality of women is fundamen- gender-neutral “Presidente.” tal to national strength and democracy around the world. This led her to press for reproduc- tive health care, launch a campaign for clean stoves, and create a new position—the ambas- BRAZILIANS TEND TO REACT sador-at-large for global women’s issues—in the Office of Global Women’s Issues, which tries to TO A POTENTIAL BOLSONARO ensure that women’s issues are integrated into PRESIDENCY WITH A MIX OF the formation and implementation of U.S. for- eign policy. She also helped secure the first U.N. HORROR AND AMUSEMENT. resolution on gay rights, which calls for an end to the criminalization of homosexuality. Many critics on the right questioned if At least for now, retro-macho politics is on Clinton’s “soft” policies warranted equal atten- the rise in Brazil, as both the policies of the Te- tion to seemingly more important priorities. mer government and Congressman Bolsonaro’s “[S]hould we ... place the human rights of for- electoral prospects clearly demonstrate. Much eigners on foreign soil on par with grave issues like with Trump’s presidential campaign, Brazil- like the threat of weapons of mass destruction? ians tend to react to a potential Bolsonaro pres- Are gay rights, and human rights more broadly, idency with a mix of horror and amusement, truly ‘geostrategic’?” asked John Allen Gay in even as polls show Bolsonaro pulling ahead of The National Interest in December 2013. other contenders, including President Temer. Despite Rousseff’s disappointing record With the election not until October 2018, it on reproductive rights and her reluctance to could be a while before we know whether the embrace same-sex marriage (she supports revival of retro-macho politics signals a return same-sex civil unions), her administration to a patriarchy-dominated society or the last left a distinct feminist legacy. She expanded gasp of a dying order. l

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