For the world to see: Bolsonaro’s failure to protect the Amazon

In Brazil, the popular historical expression “for the English to see” means “for the purpose of appearance, without validity”. It emerged in the nineteenth century, when England, for economic reasons, tried to abolish slavery throughout the world, including in Brazil, whose economy was based on slavery. To deceive the British, the Brazilian Empire placed ships on the coast with the supposed mission of going after slave ships. In practice, however, nothing happened. It was just a staging “for the English to see.”

At the Leaders’ Summit on the Climate, held on Earth Day, April 22, the speech by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to the forty world leaders is a clear example of the use of this popular Brazilian expression, this time expanded: “for the world to see”.

The virtual meeting was an attempt by the Brazilian government to persuade the international community that Brazil needs financial support from other countries to save the Amazon rainforest.

Read the full article in The Progressive.