Based on the observation that land occupations with camps currently place an unavoidable demand on the Brazilian state for land expropriation and redistribution, the article analyzes the sociogenesis of this discourse. The authors seek to: examine how the first landless camps emerged; understand how men and women mobilized to occupy land; and identify relations between the original landless camps in Brazil and the current ones. The article takes a comparative approach, focusing on the individuals involved in the first land occupations in the South, Southeast, and Northeast of the country. In the conclusion, the authors show how such discourse draws on individual initiatives and the intersection between historical processes, the constitution of movements, and the response by the Brazilian state.

À partir du constat que les occupations de terres suivies de campements constituent actuellement au Brésil un langage incontournable employé pour demander à l'État l'expropriation et la redistribution des terres, dans cet article on analyse la sociogenèse de ce langage. On cherche à examiner comment ont été mis en place les premiers campements, comment hommes et femmes se sont disposés à occuper des terres, et identifier les relations entre ces campements et ceux de nos jours. On se sert d'une approche comparative dont le fil conducteur est le groupe d’individus engagé dans les premières occupations au sud, sud-est et nord-est du Brésil. On voit que le langage est tributaire d'initiatives individuelles, du croisement de processus historiques, de la constitution de mouvements et de la façon d'écouter de l'État brésilien.

No segundo semestre de 2000, acompanhei a etapa final de um processo de mobilização para uma ocupação de terras no estado do Rio de Janeiro. Esse processo, organizado pelo MST/RJ, envolveu a realização de reuniões preparatórias, as chamadas reuniões de frente de massa. Por meio da descrição e da análise de algumas dessas reuniões, examino neste artigo como foi o processo de mobilização. Focalizando o ponto de vista dos organizadores, apresento as estratégias adotadas e discuto seus limites, possibilidades e contradições. De um ponto de vista mais amplo, o texto insere-se na discussão sobre a constituição dos movimentos sociais no Brasil. Nesse sentido, aponto para os limites de dois tipos de abordagens: aquelas que reivindicam um caráter espontâneo para a formação dos movimentos sociais, e aquelas que percebem esses processos como novas formas de se reproduzirem antigos modelos da relação patrão-empregados.

In the second half of 2000, I accompanied the final phase of a land occupation campaign in Rio de Janeiro state. Organized by the Rio de Janeiro Landless Workers Movement (MST/RJ), this campaign involved a series of preparatory meetings, called mass front meetings. Starting with a description and analysis of some of these meetings, I examine how the campaign process unfolded. Focusing on the viewpoint of the organizers, I present the adopted strategies and discuss their limitations, possibilities and contradictions. From a wider viewpoint, the text looks to contribute to the current debate concerning the formation of social movements in Brazil. To this end, I point out the limitations of two kinds of approach: those which claim social movements form more or less spontaneously, and those which perceive these processes as new forms of reproducing old models of the boss-employee relationship.