For more than a week Brazilian workers have taken to the streets. Yesterday, the country witnessed its biggest demonstrations since the fall of the dictatorship. But the situation on the ground has confounded many international commentators.

Interviewing for Jacobin, Mark Bergfeld sheds light on new developments with Miguel Borba de Sa — a university lecturer at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. He is the author of Bolívia — Passos das revoluções and has written extensively on indigenous struggles in Latin America.

Mark Bergfeld is a socialist activist in London. He was a leading participant of the UK student movement in 2010.