Who is the President of Brazil? If they didn't know, you probably don't either.
Sergio Viera, a journalism student from Sao Paulo, Brazil, described in detail what he thought of American politics, the American president and the American economy to a journalism class at the University at Albany. In return, not a single American student could name his country's president.
When Professor Rosemary Armao posed the question from the back of the room, more than 20 students looked down at their notebooks. Then, when asked by one of the Brazilian professors if they even knew what the capital city of Brazil was, one student slowly raised her hand.
What does this say about American youth? Does this mean that they are ignorant about what's going on in the world? Brazil is one of the largest nations on earth, both geographically and in population. Was this blatant ignorance a slap in the face to the Brazilian students? Not as far as they were concerned.
The class from Mackenzie University in Sao Paulo seemed way more interested in speaking about America, its wonders and its problems, than they were about their own country. They told the class that the current economic crises that have been plaguing America have had a trickle down effect on their country.
If this class was a representative sample of what the youth of Brazil was like, any American would be highly impressed, and possibly even slightly intimidated. These students spoke fluent English, and had a clear knowledge and curiosity about the world, and its affairs.
This was not a representative sample of the Brazilian youth however. Angela Schaun, one of the Brazilian professors said, "In Brazil, there's more of a difference in people in society...a bigger gap between rich and poor." This is when Armao interjected once again from the back of the room to push her students to never let a statement go unquestioned.
"You say there's a gap, so which are you, are you rich or are you poor?" Armao called out to the unsuspecting Brazilian crew. This question shocked students, both American and Brazilian. With the silence growing one of the Brazilian students, Pedro Sorrentino, simply said, "We're not the Rockefellers, but we can afford to come here."
They may not be Rockefellers, but they do represent the most privileged class in Brazilian society and of all the places in the world to study, they chose to study here. Aside from the obvious point that a trip to America is quite cheap these days, due to the feeble American dollar, Viera said, "What brought us here were the American elections."
The class was not very shy in saying who they would vote for if they had the chance. Sorrentino said, "I would vote for Barack Obama...I don't fit at all with the republicans." The entire class seemed to agree. "Obama runs for a new future, and he has the courage to talk about new things...we have to have courage." said Professor Schaun.
This Brazilian class sees something in Barack Obama that they have seen for years in a man they lovingly refer to as "Lula." Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a man who could not be named by the average American, is the President of Brazil. Lula came from a poor upbringing, and has led the Brazilian people into one of its greatest periods, a period that is being threatened by the prospect of an American economic collapse. One of the Brazilian professors, Marcia Detoni, may have said it best. "A worker can come into power, just like a black man can become president. It shows that things are changing. We are moving step by step."
David Caliguiri
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