How it’s to live in a Modern Dystopia?
By: Tori S.
Tags: Hunger Games, Dystopia, Covid 19, Brazil, Bolsonaro

If you have been a teen in the 2010’s you probably had read, watched or even just hear about the Sussane Collins’s trilogy, The Hunger Games. Back when the first movie had been released in 2012, I was caught on the hysteria that it was. But know, almost 10 years later, when I watch my surrounding, I realize that the isn’t a big difference betwing my reality and Katniss.

MÍDIA NINJA

In order to you, reader, understand where I stand to say such thing, I’m a Brazilian women, part of a middle class, that had the opportunity to learn another language, and dream about going to university, actually I was accepted in one. The Brazilians admission on university are different from US, we’re accepted duo a national exams, and by our scores we can apply for a public/federal university, the public ones have the best academic rates, been some of those university the best on Latin america, and in the world.

But why I’m telling you this?

It’s not a mystery, or a secret what have been happening in Brazil since 2016 (I recommend the documentary The Edge of Democracy, which was even indicated for the Oscars back in 2019). The hate speech have been growing ever since, and erupted in 2018 when the actual president was elected. Those words of anger and hate, with are not a like a democracy state, a man that during his election period said that he will strafe his party enemies. By now that I’m writing this, Brazil had surpass the mark of 473 thousand deaths by COVID. He end up killing more than Petistas (as we call people that are affiliated and follow the workers party, PT), and killed 4% of the country population. But how he did so? Since the begging of the pandemic, he teat the virus as it was just a “little flu”, when asked about the deaths back on 2020, he answered “What I have to do with that?”. Continuously not using masks, encouraging preventive treatment with drugs that can lead to dependency. Not only physically, he had been killing us mentally it day.

BRASIL DE FATO

Far from the end of the pandemic, the president came on national television to make a pronunciation four days ago (June 4th), in a 5:30 minutes speech he only addressed the deaths once, contouring the situation talking about the economic growth; on the same time we are dealing with high of the rates of hunger, and NGOs are trying to collect and distribute food. When our country produce the rice, and the soy use in the world, as the meat consumed as well, as the the newspaper articles are about how to substitute those foods. On this scenarios, last year has bushed the spends made with food by the ministries, that had spend over 15 million of reais (almost 3 million on dollars) on condensate milk.

And the vaccines ….. what I can they you about the vaccines …. To understand the situation you need to know two things.

First, we have a national free medical care, that historically take care of every vaccine we take, that are a lot, this program its call SUS (sistema único de saúde — unique health system). Remembering we are a country that are a part of the historic forests of Amazon, as Mata atlântica, so we already take vaccines every year, and is not a problem at all. This healthy system, distribute and apply FREE vaccines, and you can get medicines, treatment, queries … all the healthy care you may need, and is not only for free, but for everyone (even foreigners).

And second, we have a said, because of this tradition of taking vaccines every year. “Vacina de graça, até na testa” (free vaccine, even on the forehead)

Last year, we had manifestations in front of the Supreme Court, almost every weekend, begin for the closure of it, as the institution of a dictatorship made by Bolsonaro. Yes, that is he’s name, I tried not writing, but its impossible, as another teen saga tough us, we should not fear people by name. Those manifestations were “protected” by the police, and once the people that do not follows dose ideals are suppress, even this as a democratic system, which all of us should have the rights to stand and speak our selves, this is not what is happening. Even before quarantine, back in university, my professor of Politics, had asked the room, if anyone that felt same, going to the center of the city (Rio de Janeiro) and speak their minds ….. i suppose you know the answer.

Instagram @hugomunizzz

On the last May 29th millions of people when to streets to protest, on the middle of a pandemic, the protests weren’t televised for weeks, until the bigger broadcaster of the country stared to talk about the police brutality with the protesters. People that were on streets following their lives were attacked, two men had lost their eyesight for rubber bullet, and a congresswoman on the state had received pepper spray in eyes for questioning who gave the orders to the police to act that way.

On the other way, weeks prior the president and his supports made a parade on Rio de Janeiro, with any retaliation of the police.

We die each day from Bolsonaro, that is our disease.

The bolsonaro government is more dangerous that the virus Photo: Zô Guimarães/UOL

So, how it’s to live in a modern dystopia? Its scary. We fell powerless, because all we can do is try to protect our selves and our love ones, but how to do so, when you have to take a crowed bus to go work every day? how to do so when the community you live don’t have cane water to wash your hands? how to do so when you family had died, and you couldn’t even saw them? How to keep studying on my university, when the federal funds are cut every month? When will we reach our limit?