The first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil were denounced as genocidal. There was consensus on this accusation, although it was lobbed by opposing camps. On one side, it came from those who accused President Bolsonaro's... more
The first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil were denounced as genocidal. There was consensus on this accusation, although it was lobbed by opposing camps. On one side, it came from those who accused President Bolsonaro's administration of causing avoidable deaths by refusing to support mainstream scientific guidance on personal protective equipment and social distancing; and for promoting the off-label use of hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin, and a rotating cast of other medications and supplements that came to be known as "early treatment" (tratamento precoce). But on the other side, "genocide" referred to the measures for containing the pandemic, notably opposed by Bolsonaro, and instead enacted by ministries or at the state and municipal level. As one protest sign summed up the position: "Genocidal is the one who stays at home with guaranteed income and wants the other to die of hunger." People decried lockdowns, masking, and-above all-withholding support for "early treatment."
