Abstract:
This article analyzes the political and economic positions of evangelical deputies in the Constituent Assembly (1987-1988). Based especially on speeches by the deputies Daso Coimbra and Fausto Rocha, we demonstrate the presence of a liberal-economic rhetoric in the defense of free initiative and entrepreneurship, that grew out of the reaction to an opposing pole, identified with progressive groups and parties more explicitly located on the left of the political spectrum - seen as a defender of “statist” perspectives for economic and social life of country. The speeches are notable for their strong anticommunist, anti-state perspective, and for the association between free enterprise and free religious expression and initiative. Finally, the article shows how these parliamentarians worked together to support the Centrão, defending the amendment of the bylaws of the Constituent Assembly.
Keywords:
Brazil; Constituent Assembly (1987-1988); Religion and Politics; Protestantism - Political Aspects - Brazil; Liberalism