Presenter Luciano Hack used the frame “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” To teach history class on open TV. Using the example of a Venezuelan refugee, he offered some hints about the risks Brazil faces in going through a situation similar to that of the neighboring country.
The character in question was Mariver Vargas, a professor of history and geography in Venezuela who left the country four years ago. Her husband came to Brazil five years ago, after reporting a case of corruption at a Venezuelan state company. He, who worked for a public television station, was subjected to political persecution and the kidnapping of him and his wife.
The story made Luciano alert his audience several times about the dangers and changes that could occur in the country if democracy were to end. “Your generation in Venezuela directly felt what happens when there is an authoritarian regime, an undemocratic regime, it doesn’t matter if it’s right or left. I’m talking about democracy and freedom.”
Mariver lived an upper-middle-class life in Maracay. She lived in a 350-square-meter house, owned a car and she and her husband had a good job. Upon arriving in Brazil, she and her daughter had to share a room with 15 other women in São Paulo.
“Neighbor Next Door is proof that life can change a lot – everyone’s life – in the blink of an eye. It changes from one method to another. Defending democracy, defending the right to vote, and the right to say think differently, respect” Luciano said. What is different. It makes you change your country, your life, your style, everything.”
The teacher noted another case of the change in the Venezuelan school curriculum, which, with the seizure of power by the military, began to emphasize the “absolute sovereignty of the motherland.” Additionally, the government has placed more military personnel in schools.
When asked how long it took Marifer’s life to completely change, Luciano warned again. “This whole dream, by a government that is mistaken, from the point of view of freedom, which insults democracy, when it is all over and you find yourself having to flee to another country.”
Mariver replied that this transformation in the life of the family and the country occurred in about two years.
Those who watched, paid more attention, received the message.
