ABSTRACT
Chapter 4 introduces the first of five examples of protest literacies covered in the book: campaigning literacies – that is, particular repertoires of literacy practices that feature centrally in social practices of campaigning. In tandem, Chapter 4 also introduces the first of multiple examples of what are referred to throughout the book as symbols of protest and symbolization trajectories. The first example is the so-called Skull, a controversial armoured vehicle deployed in Rio’s favelas since the early 2000s by a special unit of the Rio de Janeiro State Military Police. In Chapter 4, the historical trajectory of this vehicle and its symbolic associations are charted, central to which is social movement campaigning contesting these. Besides illustrating its symbolization trajectory and campaigning literacies informing this, the case of The Skull in Chapter 4 serves as an important reference point in an emerging cycle of contentious politics in Rio from around 2006 onwards that continues to be charted through subsequent chapters.
