In the months of June and July of 2013, huge demonstrations took place in hundreds of Brazilian cities, involving millions of people who took to the streets to protest against corruption in governmental institutions and claim better public services, education and transport. This paper analyzes these demonstrations in Brazil through the prism of nationalism. It highlights the use of nationalist symbols such as the national flag, the singing of Brazilian national anthem and banners with nationalist slogans as a novelty in Brazilian demonstrations which traditionally have used leftist symbols such as banners with the hammer and sickle and red flags. Basing the argument on the concepts of “ressentiment” and “long-distance nationalism,” the paper tries to explain why in an era of globalization and cosmopolitanism, people are still touched by the spell of nationalism.
