A quick reminder to our community of supporters that the Zoom link for today’s salon at 4pm ET was posted on Friday. You can find that here. 

Wannabe Trump and eager student of Steve Bannon’s dark arts, Jair Bolsonaro, was sentenced this month to 27 years in prison for inciting his supporters to violently overthrow democracy in Brazil. And where was Bolsonaro during the coup attempt? Florida, of course: a state otherwise known as the Republican National Committee. There, his close allies, including his son, met with Bannon after losing the 2022 election, in the lead up to their January 8, 2023 insurrection.

So why did Brazil hold its coup plotters accountable while America did not? The short answer: white people. For generations, white America has enjoyed relative prosperity and peace, told endlessly that this is the greatest country on Earth, ever. That has lulled many into a dangerous, willful coma of complacency, one that Stephen Miller and MAGA’s disastrous policies will shatter, the hard way. Will it take years, or will it take decades? That depends on how we use the next 12 months to help mobilize a resilient grassroots resistance–more on that in coming episodes. 

Featured in this special episode, for more on Brazil’s inspiring resistance, listen to this excerpt from our Gaslit Nation Book Club discussion in August, where we looked at two powerful films about art and resistance. The Lives of Others (2006), by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, follows a Stasi officer whose heart is changed by spying on artists. We also discussed I’m Still Here (2024) by Walter Salles, based on Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s memoir about his extraordinary mother, Eunice Paiva, who stood up to Brazil’s military dictatorship, fought for justice for her disappeared husband–a dissident politician, and later championed indigenous rights in the Amazon as a human rights lawyer. The full discussion can be found here on Patreon. 

We’re sharing this excerpt now to celebrate Bolsonaro’s conviction and as a reminder that America must wake up. In the weeks ahead, Gaslit Nation will ramp up for the 2026 Midterms, sharing strategies to protect our vote and counter Republican ratf*cking. Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, our September Book Club read is the short but powerful Harriet Tubman: The Moses of Her People by Sarah Bradford. Join the discussion at the Gaslit Nation Salon this Monday, September 29, at 4 PM. See you there!

Want to enjoy Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chat, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!

Show Notes

• AP News Brazil’s Bolsonaro sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison for coup plot https://apnews.com/article/brazil-bolsonaro-supreme-court-trial-coup-attempt-f95765c36dbbdc3355ad3af0b70eacf6 

• Reuters — Brazilians protest efforts to shield Bolsonaro https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazilians-protest-efforts-shield-bolsonaro-lawmakers-courts-2025-09-21/

• Los Angeles Times — Bolsonaro in Florida as Brazil riots erupt https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2023-01-10/us-bolsonaro-florida-brazil-riots

• Washington Post — Bannon and Trump allies advised Bolsonaro’s circle https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/11/23/brazil-bolsonaro-bannon/

• The Atlantic — Brazil Stood Up for Its Democracy. Why Didn’t the U.S.? https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2025/02/brazil-bolsonaro-coup/681788/

• ACLU — Supreme Court grants Trump broad immunity for official acts https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/supreme-court-grants-trump-broad-immunity-for-official-acts-placing-presidents-above-the-law