A Democratic Veneer: Authoritarian Legacies and the Persistence of Militarized Policing in Brazil

• In Event: 40210 - Violence, Interpretation, and the State: Authoritarian Strategies from Coercion to Consent

Abstract

Brazil’s 1988 transition to democracy is often hailed as a success, yet police brutality, extrajudicial killings, and systemic repression persist at alarmingly high rates. Rather than viewing police violence as a mere reaction to crime or inequality, this study argues that militarized policing in Brazil is a legacy of the country’s authoritarian past, reinforced by an incomplete democratization process that failed to reform security institutions. This research examines how institutional and cultural legacies from the military regime (1964–1985) continue to shape contemporary policing, despite Brazil’s formal democratization. Drawing on legal documents, government reports, human rights investigations, and historical archives, I trace the continuities between authoritarian-era security structures and contemporary police practices. The 1988 Constitution preserved the military structure of the police, maintaining their subordination to the armed forces and reinforcing a security apparatus designed to control, rather than serve, the population. A wartime mentality persists in police training and operations, framing marginalized populations as internal enemies. At the same time, police impunity remains institutionalized, as legal frameworks and political incentives shield officers from accountability, allowing state violence to continue unchecked. My findings demonstrate that police brutality is not an anomaly within Brazilian democracy but rather a fundamental feature of its post-authoritarian state. By reframing police violence as a structural legacy rather than a contingent phenomenon, this research contributes to broader debates on democratic consolidation and state violence. Addressing police militarization is critical for strengthening democracy, as authoritarian security practices undermine civilian oversight, equal protection under the law, and human rights. Without substantive reform, Brazil will remain a democracy in form but not in practice.

Author

• Luiza Monetti, University of California-Los Angeles