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Brazil: South America
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Brazil is the only Portuguese-speaking nation in the Americas. About three quarters of all Brazilians belong to the Roman Catholic Church; most others are Protestant, members of a growing evangelical movement, or follow practices derived from African religions.
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Brazil is a member of ALADI, a Latin American organization providing duty rate reductions to its members. Brazil ... is a member of the MERCOSUL -- the Southern Common Market, composed of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay (known as MERCOSUR in the Spanish language countries.)
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Brazil has one of the most advanced industrial sectors in Latin America. Accounting for one-third of GDP, Brazil's diverse industries range from automobiles and parts, other machinery and equipment, steel, textiles, shoes, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, and petrochemicals, to computers, aircraft, and consumer durables. Most major automobile producers have established production facilities in Brazil.
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To scenes of wild rejoicing on the streets, the people of Brazil celebrated the landslide victory of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the president of the Workers’ Party (PT). This was undoubtedly a heavy blow struck by the masses against the corrupt and degenerate oligarchy that has ruled Brazil for decades. It has caused shock waves that will reverberate throughout the whole of Latin America and beyond. Now ... a period opens up in which the PT government will come under enormous pressure from two sides, the bourgeoisie and the workers and poor. Alan Woods outlines the tasks facing the Brazilian working class.
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Harvard's relationship with Brazil has surprisingly deep roots. The first diploma awarded by Harvard to a non-graduate was an honorary degree given to General George Washington in 1776, on the very day the Continental Army retook Harvard Yard from the British and the fellows and students of Harvard College returned to Cambridge from their temporary exile in Concord. By a curious historical coincidence, this diploma was among the documents in a published French translation, discussed by the conspirators in Minas Gerais in 1788 who were planning an armed uprising against Portuguese rule and intended not only to establish a republic inspired by the U.S. model but ... to found a university. Gabriel Rocha, a junior at Harvard College, found the original text of Washington's diploma in the Harvard archives and this fascinating story is the subject of an article by him in the Spring 2007 issue of ReVista: Harvard Review of Latin America, which is devoted entirely to Brazil.
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Despite its vast expanse of territory, Brazil's population is concentrated in the major cities of its coast. The urban sprawls of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo dominate the southern coast. Further north, towns such as Salvador and João Pessoa retain the colonial atmosphere of the early Portuguese settlers. The great interior, much of which is covered by the rainforest basin of the Amazon, remains sparsely settled.
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