Without a mandate, without a party and saying free to draw criticism to the left, former federal deputy Manuela d’Ávila sees the political field itself with difficulties of mobilization on the streets.
Part of this attributes to the success of the right on social networks, the result of various factors, and the misunderstanding that the digital world today can no longer be disassociated from the real world.
Last year, the party to which he was affiliated for 25 years, alleging discontent with the direction of the acronym. In assessing the left’s posture, he has set a parallel with the episode in which a sentence was falsely attributed to Maria Antonieta, Queen of France in the 18th century, in which she told the population, who complained about the lack of bread and hungry, to feed on Brioches.
“Various traces of institutional life are, before the eyes of the people, luxuries to which the population cannot be given. The way parliamentarians live is different from the life of the working people,” says Manuela.
The former mayor of Araraquara Edinho Silva [PT] He said it is necessary to recognize that the left has. Do you agree with that?
This is a fact of reality. Who does not see the social base and the way the extreme right has agglutinated social sectors? On the other hand, our institutions are trying to make up a fact of reality, which is very tough. We need to take the biggest lessons from this. This statement of Edinho is, for me, quite evident and obvious, coming from those who are not trying to deny reality, but rather looking at her carefully.
Why does the left face mobilization difficulty?
This relates to dilemmas we face in Brazil and worldwide, including the transfer of the public sphere to the digital environment. Networks are the main space for social debate and are not transparently and neutrally intermediated, but by algorithms that reproduce concepts closer to the far right, which presents lying but simple solutions. There is no unique response to such a complex problem that is confused not only with the ability to mobilize the left, but with the defense of democracy itself. This is another hole, because the left is isolated, with few social sectors defending the existence of a democratic environment.
You have said that Maria Antonieta dwells the left field as well. Why?
It is a historical fact that, although it did not happen, became emblematic. Several traits of institutional life are, before the eyes of the people, luxuries to which the population cannot be given. The way parliamentarians live is different from the life of the working people. The extreme right, with a lot of lie, creates characters, like when the [Jair] Bolsonaro takes his bread and puts condensed milk. Even if he is accused of stealing jewelry from public heritage and selling, he does not appear next to a waiter serving red wine and fillet. This gives the idea of greater proximity and identity. We have to understand the dimension of the wear and tear of our political system and the breaches that the far right occupies.
Lula government communication. Do you think this has hurt his image?
To say that there is no problem in communication would be superficial and exaggerated, but in my interpretation, attributing all problems to communication is too. When people say the problem is in communication, they refer to social networks and use things that are not equivalent as synonym. Knowing that the far right operates in the world of misinformation, everything that can be misunderstood is predictable in the elaboration of policies. I, for example, in everything I do already think which fake news can generate.
This has been one of the main causes of?
Networks are not just communication, they are mobilization, organization and dispute intense around ideas. Network misunderstanding is one of the most common political problems inside and outside the government. But it is not exclusivity of the government. I don’t like the false dichotomy of the real and the virtual, as they speak sometimes. It seems that we are in the 1980s playing Atari when I hear it! People’s real life is crossed by what circulates in the virtual. The “Adolescence” series is not just on Netflix, it has become a subject in schools, my family, among my friends, in my therapy. How to treat real and virtual differently?
Entering the party theme, why did you decide to leave?
Although not the only reason for my departure, I disagreed with the federation with the PT, because I think the PT, while a very large party, would take the autonomy of the B PC, which is a smaller party. The wide front is essential, but a leftist party must fulfill the role of being the left within that, and if you are federated with the PT, which has the responsibility to harmonize this front, it limits your ability to present ideas. In Brazilian politics, the fact that people leave one party to dispute the election on another was normalized, and that was not my case.
Do you see a chance to join a party to leave a candidate in 2026?
When I, it was very difficult for people to understand. I have been the target of the far right since the beginning of President Dilma’s impeachment process. Despite having made a great effort to maintain my mental health, I had a lot of physical impact on the violence I suffered. But now it may be that there is the possibility that I dispute, because I have no personal impediment. Does it mean that I will compete? No. But I am the name of the left that best scores in the senate research here in Rio Grande do Sul. The people in my political field talk to me about this possibility. I haven’t been in a mandate for six years, I’m not thinking of joining a party just to run for the election. I can even compete, but they are not concatenated choices.
Have you talked to a party?
I received invitations to join the parties of my field. They have been very respectful, because they know that party for me is a serious thing, not an outfit that I have seen just to compete for an election.
What were these parties?
There are not so many left parties in Brazil, right? [risos]
If Bolsonaro is arrested, do you believe the right can strengthen or weaken to 2026?
I find it evident that he arrested disturb the far right, because he is a former president and has popular prestige. But that does not take off the competitiveness of the far right, which maintains an offensive political around ideas that will continue to spin.
X-ray | Manuela D’Ávila, 43
Journalist, he was a councilwoman, state and federal deputy. She is coordinator of the Institute and if you were you, aimed at combating gender political violence, left the B PC in 2024 after 25 years affiliated with the acronym, for which she played the 2018 presidential election, as Fernando Haddad (PT). In the last two elections, he advised campaigns across the country.
