Olá, queridos leitores! Hello, dear readers!

Here is part two of our 2017 retrospectiva. Estou prontos? Are you ready? So brace yourselves for some more!

Cenário político brasileiro | Brazilian political scene

It is hard to pick among the many scandals envolving Brazilians politicians that transpired in Brazil this year. From a mysterious plane crash that took the life of Supreme Court Justice in charge of criminal investigations Teori Zavascki to a room packed with suitcases filled with over 51 million reais of public money in cash and even an operation that revealed the adulteration of poor quality and expired meat, it is no surprise that our nation is undergoing a deep political crisis. No party is innocent, all major political groups are caught up in heavy accusations of curruption, including – for the first time ever in our history – our own president, Michel Temer.

It seems hard to keep up with the constant controversy breaking out in the government, but our political battleground will demand even more awareness and foresight with the upcoming elections this year. Picking a new president among the possible candidates is going to be no easy task, and we are sure 2018 will be a year to remember.

President Michel Temer (photo by Beto Barata/PR [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons)

Censorship had been a major issue in Brazil during its grim military dictatorship era. Decades have passed and it seems that we still have to deal with echoes of authoritarianism. This debate arose after an art show financed by Santander bank in the city of Porto Alegre, entitled Queermuseum: Queer Tactics Toward Non-Heteronormative Curating, had to be shut down a month ahead of schedule as a response to a campaign waged by protesters. Rightwing  and religious groups accused it of being highly immoral for its supposedly erotic content endorsing blasphemy, child prostitution, paedophilia and bestiality. The curator, who states that the museum believes in diversity, inclusion and difference, firmly denies those charges and claims that the accusations are unfounded.

Including 263 works from Brazilian celebrated names such as Candido Portinari, Lygia Clark Adriana Varejão and Leonílson, the art pieces in the exhibition underwent severe criticism possibly due to a gross misinterpretation of their meaning. Though a petition has been signed demanding its reopen, Santander’s backwards and narrow-minded decision to cave to conservative movements and cancel the event is a sign of times of growning intolerance. We should always be reminded of the role of art as a tool to foster reflection and critical thinking and be aware that taking down Queermuseum not only restricts artistic freedom, but freedom as a whole.

Protester defends the Queermuseu exhibition (photo by Eugenio Hansen, OFS (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons)

Not all was bad news for Brazil this year after all. You may have your Beyoncés, Shakiras or Rihannas, but our local diva is no less than brunette bombshell  Anitta. The singer, songwriter and dancer has been one of the highlights in the musical scene since rose to stardom in 2012 and has since dominated the dance floors. Previously a funk singer, Anitta is now on her way towards becoming a global diva trying to reach wider audiences with a more appealing pop melody that takes her work to a new level.

This year, the pop sensation has set her sight on the international market, collaborating with artists like Iggy Azalea and Major Lazer, exceeding the mark of a million views per video. She even made an appearance on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon. Also, her lattest single has been the first song in Portuguese to ever enter the Spotify Global top 20 chart! Currently, the star has just completed CheckMate, a groundbreaking project which reverberated across the country and sent the internet into a meltdown with her aim of releasing one new every month. With all the interest Anitta has been sparking lately, I ask you: who run the world? We’ll see!

Brazilian diva Anitta (photo by Teca Lamboglia from São Paulo, Brasil (COMBATCHY – Espaço das Américas) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons)