A importância da arte brasileira para a denúncia de violações de Direitos Humanos durante a Ditadura Militar: Uma análise dos Anos de Chumbo (1968-1974)

Abstract

What is the significance of art for a society living under a state of exception? Guided by this and other inquiries, the present thesis seeks to elucidate the role assumed by cinema – within the perspectives of Cultural Resistance – as an essential tool for denouncing human rights violations perpetrated by the Brazilian State during the Anos de Chumbo. To examine such implications, the particularities leading to the 1964 Coup d’état are retraced, analysing its motivations and arrangements through internal forces – supported by external forces – to establish a repressive state apparatus that systematically targeted any citizens who contested the regime and/or prevailing morals of the time. With the enactment of Institutional Act No. 5, censorship and repression already practiced by the Brazilian State acquired new intensities – marking the period conventionally referred to as the Anos de Chumbo (1968–1974). In this interim, the role of resistance culture is highlighted, as it was capable of nationally and internationally diffusing the dilemmas, fears, and aspirations experienced by the Brazilian society. Through the analysis of selected films released by the Cinema Novo and the Cinema Marginal movements, nuances of these artistic manifestations are observed as critiques and denunciations against the military regime; documents derived from the dictatorship's information services attest to such characteristics—perceived as subversive. Following the conciliatory transition to democracy, Brazilian society managed to reorganize the struggles for memory, truth, and justice that emerged in the context of the military dictatorship, establishing mechanisms necessary for implementing Transitional Justice in Brazil. However, this process was reinforced by the perception of impunity – under a democratic state – regarding the perpetrators of excruciatingly violent practices articulated during the 21 years of military dictatorship. Brazil is, therefore, a country without collective memory regarding the atrocities committed throughout this period. In the four decades separating the present from the end of the regime, the culture of resistance and the new perspectives it has acquired remain relevant for understanding the dyad of denunciation and resistance, maintaining its significance in contemporary times by utilizing the realm of memory to enhance its debates.