Editorial

Abstract

The worst illiterate is the political illiterate. He/she does not listen to, he/she does not talk about or even take part in political events. He/she does not know that the cost of living, the price of beans, fish, flour, the rent, the shoes and the medication depend on political decisions. The political illiterate is so stupid, that he/she is proud and with a lot of confidence he/she says he/she hates politics. This moron does not know that from his/her political ignorance, the prostitutes are born, as well as the homeless children and the worst of all the bad guys is the pettifogging, sleazy, corrupt and lackey politician of national and international companies (1).

The abovementioned text, attributed to Brecht, highlights the alienation,
reluctance, resistance or even the horror that a lot of people feel when they meet the difficulties of exercising their citizenship. It has been decades that this condition is attributed, at least partly, to the fear of freedom and of responsibility it brings about (2). But the fact that they are not heard, the little identification with the elected to represent them, the impunity against malversation of public funds, the lack of access to fundamental rights, such as health and education, also undermine the hope of citizens, contributing to cause apathy and produce “political illiterates in large scale. This condition is also an improper heritage of over 20 years of military dictatorship, that ruled the country from the 1960s.