International solidarity and foreign interventionism: Brazilian and American labor relations during the dictatorship in Brazil (1960s and 70s)

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the role of American trade unionism during the Brazilian dictatorship examining the activities of American Institute for Free Labor Development (AIFLD). It will pay particular attention to the political repression and anti-labor policy conducted by the dictator Emílio Garrastazu Médici (1969–74). The examination of the U.S. labor policy in Brazil during the heydays of the cold war in Latin America is an interesting case study of the contradictions and paradoxes of the AFL-CIO and American international relations during that period, as well as a stimulating example of transnational trade union and international solidarity relations during this period. The paper investigates how AIFLD reacted to human rights violations perpetrated by the Médici regime, highlighting the fine line between American international labor solidarity and foreign intervention during the cold war period. As a final point, the paper analyzes the workers’ resistance to the dictatorial regime, as well as the U.S. interpretation of the Brazilian labor movement in this context of repression and human rights violations.