Beyond the Coup: Versions and Controversies about 1964 and the Military Dictatorship

The early 1960s were one of the most significant periods in Brazilian political history. A time of creativity, social awareness, and, for some, subversion. An atmosphere of freedom was halted by the 1964 coup, which put an end to the growing process of popular mobilization. About to turn 40 on March 31st, the military revolution remains a dark period in our recent history. To shed new light on the subject, Carlos Fico, a professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, after meticulous research, has published *BEyond the Coup: Versions and Controversies About 1964 and the Military Dictatorship*. Carlos Fico's goal is quite simple: to offer the non-specialist reader a kind of guide to understanding the 1964 coup and the military dictatorship. Regarding the coup specifically, the author has compiled a very enlightening selection of historical documents. There are 75 texts, almost all in full, many of which are completely unknown, as they are found in books no longer in circulation or in publications with difficult access. BEYOND THE COUP: VERSIONS AND CONTROVERSIES ABOUT 1964 AND THE MILITARY DICTATORSHIP transports the reader to the turbulent situation of the mid-1960s and presents the positions of figures such as Carlos Lacerda and Juscelino Kubitschek, among others. It also exposes and analyzes decisive moments, through speeches that marked Brazilian political history at landmark rallies: such as those by Leonel Brizola at Cinelândia (August 23, 1963) and Central (March 13, 1964); and João Goulart at the Automóvel Clube (March 30, 1964). The author also focused on a specific audience: students and professionals needing to research the period. The leaden years of the military dictatorship in Brazil are not easily accessible. Many schools erased the coup from their curricula and simply ignored the fact. Fico selected more than 1,100 bibliographic titles (books, articles, and academic theses) classified by themes (censorship, economics, torture, armed struggle, etc.) and also included a chronology of political episodes from 1961 to 1985. In its first chapter, "BEYOND THE COUP: VERSIONS AND CONTROVERSIES ABOUT 1964 AND THE MILITARY DICTATORSHIP" carefully assesses the main explanations for the reasons behind the 1964 coup. As in the second, it highlights the author's disagreements with certain myths and stereotypes about the military dictatorship—the alleged lack of culpability of general officers for torture, the lack of a cause-and-effect relationship between AI-5 and the armed struggle. Throughout the text, some revelations, such as the promised “bank book” (not published at the time) with which Médici's Minister of Justice, Alfredo Buzaid, intended to counter the OAS's accusations of torture, and the letters sent by ordinary people to the censorship.