Conspirituality

Listen ad-free Matthew speaks with Maria Bernardes, a volunteer in Lula's digital army, about how Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Brazil's Black Marian patron, became a flashpoint in the 2026 presidential runoff. The conflict pit Catholic, multiracial universalism against the racist neo-Pentecostal church to which the Bolsonaro father and son have given themselves, in the hope that Christofascism would lead them to power. In our segment last Thursday we discussed how Worker’s Party propaganda director Andre Janones staged an assault to capture the green-and-yellow colours back from the right wing. This is a deeper version of that story, in which the Bolsonaro gang attempted to defame the Black Virgin of Brazil as transgressive, subhuman, corrupt, and disgusting. It did not work. Maria Bernardes is a Brazilian voice actress, improv performer and anti-fascism activist, now based in Barcelona. Show Notes Maria Bernardes Maria on Instagram The 1995 "chute na santa" incident (Wikipedia) Entenda a polêmica envolvendo Flávio Bolsonaro e Nossa Senhora Aparecida (Diário do Nordeste) "Fake news, né, presidente?": Lula é contestado sobre Nossa Senhora (CNN Brasil) Flávio sobre polêmica com Nossa Senhora: "espécie de facada" (Congresso em Foco) Flávio Bolsonaro afirma que Brasil será "do Senhor Jesus Cristo" (O Tempo) Pastor de Flávio Bolsonaro diz: "Deus odeia o culto à Rainha dos Céus" (Metrópoles) Flávio presenteou o pai na prisão com livro em que bispo JB Carvalho ataca "santos católicos" (Revista Fórum) Saiba qual livro Flávio Bolsonaro apresentou em visita ao pai na prisão (Estado de Minas) CNBB defende Constituição e pede intercessão de Nossa Senhora após embate com Flávio Bolsonaro (A Gazeta) Em carta, bispos católicos apontam ameaça à democracia em candidatura de Flávio Bolsonaro (CartaCapital) Caetano Veloso, Marieta Severo e Nossa Senhora Aparecida em clipe de Lula (Revista Fórum) Tudo sobre o novo álbum de Anitta, EQUILIBRIVM II (Billboard Brasil) Edir Macedo critica lema bolsonarista "Deus, Pátria e Família" (O Povo) "Em nome do Pai": evangélicos se afastam de Flávio Bolsonaro (Agência Pública) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to the full episode What is going on with Gen-Z revolutions across the globe right now? A student-led movement in Serbia just organized a massive nonviolent protest movement against widespread corruption and democratic backsliding. Despite state control of the media, violence and intimidation from government thugs and organized crime, and election interference, they won an overwhelming victory, sending their proto-authoritarian dictator packing. This is in the wake of similar victories in Hungary, Poland, and Brazil. But it turns out that American first daughter Ivanka Trump and her real estate heir husband may have lit the fuse on both the Serbian movement and the ongoing Flamingo Revolution in neighboring Albania. They’ve been attempting to build Gulf State-funded corruption-magnet multi-billion dollar luxury hotel resorts in those countries—and the local kids are having none of it! Julian looks into how the nonviolent protest movement that ousted Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic informed the strategies and success of the Student List just this last month, leading to the CANVAS model that trains pro-democracy activists worldwide. He contrasts this with less effective, undisciplined approaches that research says often accomplishes very little, while playing into the hands of authoritarians, stopping the wider population from participating. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen ad-free First, the blue wave. Then, Russell Brand gets convicted of rape and sexual assault. Derek and Julian talk about the meltdowns going on in America right now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen ad-free For the moment, a sigh of relief ripples across America, perhaps even across the world. Seats that have not gone Democrat in decades did so across the country on Tuesday. Voters appear to have finally rejected MAGA. But from our perspective, a cult leader can only lie, cheat, and do the opposite of what he promised his followers he'd do, for so long. His now betrayed populist appeals to affordability and avoiding endless foreign wars appear to have been the final straws. Not January 6, not election tampering, not pulling out of global climate agreements, not the Ukraine-aid fiasco, not his criminal indictments, not even the actions of proto-fascist ICE thugs—the price of gas. Well, we'll take it. For now. We debrief and decompress from a night when the polling data over-delivered instead of delivering a gut-punch. Derek looks at the MAHA implications, Matthew notices a trend toward progressive populists reclaiming of patriotic symbolism, and Julian covers what and who to keep an eye on as the highly-organized anti-democracy election-conspiracists begin their assault on these results. Show Notes RFK Jr. and MAHA Suffer Brutal Election Night Wipeout Stage Set for Election Denial Chaos Key Election-Denial Activists 8 Things You Should Know About Trump’s Effort To Take Over Midterm Elections Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen ad-free Julian interviews journalist Anand Giridharadas about his new book, Man in the Mirror: Hope, Struggle, and Belonging in an American City. The book centers on the tragic death of Jordan Neely, a deeply traumatized, mentally ill, and unhoused former Michael Jackson impersonator who was put in a five-minute choke hold on a New York subway car by Marine veteran Daniel Penny, who was acquitted on all counts. Giridharadas spent three years investigating the stories beneath the high profile criminal trial. He takes readers on an immersive narrative journey that explores race, mental illness, homelessness, addiction, and the networks of support and care struggling within a failing system of social services. Show Notes Man in the Mirror: Hope, Struggle, and Belonging in an American City Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices