President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil announced last week that he would cancel a trip to New York this month in the wake of several weeks worth of controversy over the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce’s decision to honor the far-right leader at its gala later this year.
“The honor set off outrage among environmental groups, gay activists and New York politicians, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, who called Mr. Bolsonaro “a dangerous man” whose “overt racism, homophobia and destructive decisions will have a devastating impact on the future of our planet,” the New York Times reported. “The pushback began when the American Museum of Natural History, which had agreed to host the event before the honoree had been announced, reacted with dismay to Mr. Bolsonaro’s selection.”
The Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce noted on its web site that it “has learned through the office of the President of the Republic of Brazil that President Jair Bolsonaro, the 2019 Person of the Year Honoree, will not be attending the Gala Dinner on May 14th. The Chamber hereby affirms that the Gala Dinner will take place as scheduled, including the presentation of the 2019 Person of the Year Fellowship Program, and awards recognizing important contributors to Social Responsibility and Digital Innovation.”
Other parallel events scheduled during the week will take place as planned, the group said, promising to provide further updates as they become available.
“President Jair Messias Bolsonaro is the Brazilian recipient of the 2019 Person of the Year Awards,” the message continued. “Jair Bolsonaro was elected President of Brazil in October 2018. His political career began in 1988 as an elected representative of the City Council of Rio de Janeiro. In 1990, he was elected for the first of seven consecutive terms as Federal Deputy for Rio de Janeiro.
“The choice of President Bolsonaro is a recognition of his strongly stated intention of fostering closer commercial and diplomatic ties between Brazil and the United States and his firm commitment to building a strong and durable partnership between the two nations.”
“President Jair Bolsonaro’s first months in office have been marked by frustration because he refuses to horse trade in the murky party system of the Brazilian Congress. Although critics blame his inexperience and naïveté, for his part, Bolsonaro claims that Brazil must adjust to his distinct governing style,” The National Interest recently reported. “However, the impulsive and pugnacious style that swept him to electoral victory now threatens his ability to govern. Rather than identifying a new and productive way to govern for all Brazilians, Bolsonaro is busy placating his base and taunting his leftist critics. Instead of setting himself up for wins, he continues tilting at windmills.”
