The metamorphosis of a social movement: Mothers of victims of violence in Brazil

Abstract

In this article, we describe the negotiations that accompanied the transformation of a Brazilian social movement (victims of urban violence – in particular, the Movement of Mothers) into a public policy of the Minister of Justice between 2007 and 2009. Our focus is on the perspective of the “mothers” who participated in this process – women whose children had been killed or “disappeared”. The description of the this movement – the relation of the women with their political allies and various organizations of civil society, and the ultimate carry-over of the movement’s demands into public policy – sheds light on the history of victims’ movements in Brazil, highlighting the intersection of factors concerning gender, violence and social class.