Bolsonaro Blasts Lewd Carnival Scene in Controversial Tweets
- Socially conservative president fires up base, angers rivals
- Episode highlights growing social divide across the country
The parade of the Vila Isabel samba school performance during the second night of Rio's Carnival parade at the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro on March 5, 2019.
Photographer: Gilson Borba/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Carnival is a beloved institution in Brazil, a wild, sensual celebration that dates back centuries. But to the country’s new socially conservative president, Jair Bolsonaro, it is a scandalous affair that symbolizes just how much the country has lost its moral compass.
And so he wasn’t about to let his first Carnival come and go without lashing out at its more extreme elements. Late Tuesday night, just as the festivities were winding down, Bolsonaro posted a video showing a scantily dressed man in leather appearing to touch himself in front of a crowd before bending down to be urinated on by another reveler during a Carnival procession.