ABSTRACT
In June and July 2013, some 10 million people went out to protest in over 500 Brazilian cities. The crowds went out into the street to show their disagreement with a inefficient public transportation system and its costs, public services, the enormous expenditure on stadiums and money-guzzling construction projects and forced evictions of poor populations using the FIFA World Cup 2014 and Olympics 2016 (in Rio de Janeiro) as a pretext. 1 President Dilma Roussef, on a national TV and radio speech, on June 21, 2013 acknowledged that:
Those who went into the streets sent a direct message to the entire society, and, above all, to those in governing positions at all levels. This direct message from the streets is for a greater voice as citizens, better schools, better hospitals and health centers, for the right to participate. This direct message from the streets is a demand for quality public transportation at a fair price. This direct message from the streets is one for the right to influence all the decisions of all levels of government, the legislative branch and the judicial branch.
