Offers an up-to-date analysis of recent Brazilian politics and an interpretation of the unprecedented level of political polarization and mobilization the country has faced since the late 2000s

Provides a much-needed explanation of the formation of Brazilian left-wing politics in the last two decades, viewed through the prism of the labour movement, a key constituency of the Workers’ Party

Shows that despite the apparent decline of a trade union presence in politics in the developing world, the Brazilian example underlines that new forms of action and political involvement have emerged in the context of globalization