"It's not about the vaccine, it's about freedom": The activism against the compulsory vaccination for COVID-19 in Brazil
activism, vaccines, far-right, bolsonarismo, populism, framing theory
The COVID-19 pandemic was a politicized and contentious event, which made explicit ideological divisions between the radical right and progressives that existed before the health crisis. In Brazil, former president Jair Bolsonaro, a radical right populist, made several speeches attacking the COVID-19 vaccines, which fueled an unusual activism against mandatory vaccines and childhood vaccination in the country. This dissertation is guided by the following research question: what is the connection between right-wing political ideologies and activism against mandatory COVID-19 vaccination in Brazil? The general aim of the research is to understand how right-wing ideologies have been linked to the movement to challenge mandatory COVID-19 vaccination in Brazil. Specifically, we analyzed the forms of discursive legitimation and the construction of collective action frames. The research has a qualitative design based on 42 semi-structured interviews with parliamentarians and activists and 5 participant observations, in 2 online courses and in 3 face-to-face protests. Through this effort, we sought to analyze the interpretive frames and collective action strategies of activists opposed to mandatory vaccination for COVID-19. As a result, we found in the discourses a strong ideological homogeneity to the right and an identity construction that strategically rejects "anti-vaccine", "anti-science" and "denialists" labels.