The Emergence of the Brazilian Gay Liberation Movement, 1977-1981

Abstract

The Brazilian gay liberation movement emerged from the interaction of the international gay movement and the changing political situation in Brazil, which provided the catalysts for the organization of gay men and lesbians to fight for their political, social, and democratic rights. The focus of the historical analysis to follow is the gay movement as it developed in Sao Paulo, the political, economic, and cultural center of the country. It is a contribution toward a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of the development of the movement that has not yet been written. Joao S. Trevisan (1986) discusses the movement in Gay Politics and the Manipulation of Homosexuality, but his work, in addition to being extremely partisan toward the conservative wing of the movement and hostile toward the left, is not a systematic historical account of the events of 1976 onward. Sonia Alvarez (1990) presents an overview of the Brazilian women's movement that emerged at the same time as the gay liberation movement but mentions lesbian groups only in passing. Her work does, however, provide an excellent account of the political debate within the women's movement over the issue of autonomy vs. partisan politics that was also to polarize the gay movement. Because I was a participant in that movement from 1977 to 1981 and a leader of its left wing as the movement polarized, the obvious problems of overcoming bias must be balanced against the advantages of an inside view. This essay should be seen not as a definitive analysis but rather as a first step toward a more comprehensive study that remains to be undertaken. In the period discussed here, an independent lesbian movement had not yet developed. An excellent complement to this work would be an analysis of the development of lesbian organizations fighting against sexism and homophobia in Brazil.