Internationalization and construction of neoliberal ideal in Brazil: the cases of Instituto Liberal of Rio de Janeiro and Instituto de Estudos Empresariais of Rio Grande do Sul

ABSTRACT

Introduction:

We analyze two Brazilian liberal institutes (“Instituto Liberal do Rio de Janeiro” and “Instituto de Estudos Empresariais do Rio Grande do Sul”) as private devices of hegemony. Through Neo-Gramscinian Critical Theory, we show the hegemony of United States on consensus creation through strategies of internationalization of interests, actions, and values by a dominant economic class. For this purpose, “partners” institutes have been used, like the American “Atlas Network” in Brazil.

Materials and Methods:

We examine the structures, operations, and practices of these two Brazilian institutes, as well as the trajectory of its executive boards, and its international connections with the USA. For this intent, we created a database for each institute, and they were analyzed from primary and secondary documents.

Results:

We found a symbiotic relationship between the “Instituto Liberal do Rio de Janeiro” and the “Instituto de Estudos Empresariais do Rio Grande do Sul” from one point, and the Atlas Network, on the other, by spreading and naturalizing the neoliberal ideal.

Discussion:

Aside from presenting the ties that unites both dominant classes in USA and Brazil, and its efforts on promoting the neoliberal agenda, this study incites us to reflect on practices and concepts almost forgotten (or marginalized) in Political Science and International Relations, such as “imperialism”, “hegemony”, and the role of “ideology” that maintains the dominant economic structure. Furthermore, this study makes us question the predominant role that the “state”, as an unique entity and owner of a “national interest”, is presented on these same fields of study. More specifically, it allows us to recapture fundamental theoretical approaches to understand the roles of the dominant classes on creating consensus to subaltern countries and classes aiming to maintain the hegemonic structures.

Keywords
neoliberalism; Instituto Liberal; Instituto de Estudos Empresariais; Atlas Network; United States