ABSTRACT
The initial trigger of the protests was an increase in bus fares—the majority of the working poor in Sao Paulo rely on public transportation. The demonstrations started in Paulo triggered by an increase in R$0.20 in the fare of public transportation. The experience of moving around in traffic is painful for all, and the indignities of using absolutely packed public transportation – buses, vans, and subway – are a constant complaint of the millions who commute every day. The internet has been functioning for a long time as the space to express and spread the feelings of irritation. The demonstrations exercised the right to circulate throughout several parts of the city, including some where usually people don’t walk, such as expressways. The class tension that marks the city and that is expressed by its spatial segregation became palpable in social media as the protest unfolded.
