Adventures of a Gringa

Breakdown

I wasn't able to post any updates yesterday because I was really busy, but basically here's what happened with the Goldman case:

The Supreme Court unanimously voted against the appeal, a mechanism used like a class action suit to protect against a fundamental Constitutional violation. The very minister who accepted the appeal voted against it. Now, the case will return to the proper forum, the Rio state appeals court, which is said to make a decision "in the next few days." If the appeal is granted, the case could potentially go back to the Supreme Court in a legitimate appeal, and if it is denied, Sean could be sent home soon.

At the hearing, both sides' lawyers were allowed to speak, as well as a member of the political party that brought the suit and the head of the AGU, the government body supporting Sean's return to the US. The family's side spouted crap and lies as usual, while both Zamariola and Toffoli were quite eloquent. I loved when Zamariola said: "This isn't about the time Sean lost with David. It's about all the time he's going to gain with him in the future." The Associated Press very erroneously reported that Tostes talked about Sean's declaration "Whatever, it's up to the judge" when referring to his desire to stay in Brazil. That was actually Zamariola, David's lawyer who mentioned that; Tostes has very clearly been sticking to his "Sean expressly says he wants to go home" story, which only makes Sean's parental alienation all the more clear (check out Jornal Nacional below for proof).

Each minister was allowed to speak and explain their vote, and the definite shining star was Minister Ellen Gracie, who is my new hero, especially since there aren't many women like her. I missed a few of the speeches, but as far as I could tell she was amongst the only, if not the only minister to go into depth about the Hague and the heart of Sean's case, rather than the legalese nitty gritty about the laws and the appeal itself.

Essentially, this little stunt bought the Lins e Silva more time, and now it's up to the appeals court to put their foot down and put an end to this circus which is damaging Brazil's image more and more each day. It's simple: a son should be with his father. It's mind boggling that it has proved so difficult to resolve. The fact that the case has dragged on this long is a complete disgrace to the Brazilian justice system and the Brazilian government, and as her Excellence Minister Gracie said, "is beyond what is reasonable."

News Coverage:
Globo

G1

Jornal Nacional

Conjur

CNN

AP

Today Show (brief)

The Today Show is running a segment this morning about the case; I'll post it here after it airs.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

D-Day

Today, the Brazilian Supreme Court will rule on the appeal to send Sean home, though it's unclear if they will make a ruling on whether he will be sent back to the US or simply deny the appeal. According to Estadao, the court is going to throw out the case, since the political party that filed the appeal inappropriately used a measure meant for class action suits, and it is suspected that the court will in fact order Sean's return to the US. The world is watching, and this decision is critical not only for David and Sean, but for the other 70 kidnapped American children in Brazil, not to mention the international reputation of the Brazilian judicial system and government as a whole. Only time will tell.

In the meantime, the American media has been all over the story. Here are some of the highlights. ABC did a great interview with Congressman Chris Smith, and CNN's Campbell Brown interviewed David on Monday night. The story has been all over CNN, and BSH's co-founder, Mark DeAngelis, appeared in a segment yesterday morning (that I can't find online). Dateline ran an update on Sunday night, below:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

I'll continue updating throughout the day with news as it comes in.

MAS 'PERAI!

Se você fala portugues, pode acompanhar a sessão da Suprema às 14:00 na Brasília (13:00 na Nova Iorque). Pode ver na Internet aqui.

You can watch today's hearing at 2PM Brasilia Time (1PM Eastern Time) at the Supreme Court online here.

Manda Bala: An Essential Eye Opener

I managed to catch Manda Bala on a random movie channel a few weeks ago, though it was probably not the best film to watch after moving home from Brazil, since it only cemented some of the fundamental reasons I wanted to leave.

It outlines the vicious cycle of political corruption and subsequent poverty and injustice in the Northeast, the migration from the Northeast to the South, and the violence and chaos that results in Southern cities, specifically Sao Paulo. Though the film is organized somewhat haphazardly, and the filmmakers inexplicably did about half of the Portuguese interviews using simultaneous translation, rather than just adding subtitles later, it is an absolute must-see for anyone who wants to understand Brazil. For someone like me constantly asking "why?" about Brazil's complex social conflicts, it helps answer a few questions, as well as posing questions of its own.

Oh, and you'll need a strong stomach, for the sickening and maddening injustice and some of the more gruesome scenes, especially the ones in the plastic surgeon's OR.

This film has supposedly been banned in Brazil, or at least it was not allowed to be screened in theaters, but I have good news: I found the entire documentary on Youtube.

Watch the complete film after the jump.

Guest Post: Spanish vs. Portuguese

When I first heard from Tiago asking about guest posts, my first reaction was a pang of jealousy. Tiago, after all, spent some time bouncing around Brazil, and is now living in Cartagena, the heart of the Colombian Caribbean.

After I got his post, however, my reaction was quite another. I am honored to include here his wonderful text about the difference between Spanish and Portuguese, and the surprises and hilarious pitfalls of moving between the two languages. This is a must-read for language lovers and speakers of Spanish and/or Portuguese.

Spanish vs. Portuguese: What’s the Difference?

One of the most common questions I get as a Brazilian-American living in Colombia is “What is the difference between Spanish and Portuguese?” I get this question from Colombians, Brazilians and Americans alike, and I can often hear a bit of skepticism in their voice, skepticism of my insistence on spending 6 months living in Colombia to learn Spanish after nearly a year in Brazil.

Many people with some experience with these two languages hold that there are very few differences, and sometimes even go so far as to claim that they are more like different dialects of an underlying Iberian lingua franca than two completely separate tongues (they are, in fact, both in the language group called West Iberian).

This view has its merits, especially when you consider that what we know today as “Spain” is really more of a confederacy of various regions with their own distinct cultures and languages. What we call simply “Spanish” is really Castilian, the particular dialect of the Kingdom of Castile, which over several centuries was the driving force behind the expulsion of the Moors from the peninsula and the unification of the numerous Iberian kingdoms into the Spanish state. 

Seen from this point of view, tiny Portugal can seem like just another one of these mini-kingdoms that just happened to not join its neighbors, and its language the local dialect of just another regional outpost of Iberian civilization.

The reasoning behind underestimating the differences between the two languages isn’t limited to history. The modern listener upon first exposure will immediately notice the broad similarities and even sometimes identical words and phrases between them. 

Take the following sentences, where the first, bold line in each pair is in Spanish and the second is in Portuguese, taken from Gramática Esencial de Español by Manuel Seco by way of Wikipedia:

Your Post Here

I've received a couple of emails lately about this and I wanted to remind everyone that, yes, I would love guest post submissions! I can't guarantee I'll publish all of them, but if you send them to me I will definitely read them all and consider them.

Since I won't be posting on weekends anymore, if I get enough submissions I'll post some guest posts on Sundays. I'm open to posts about anything Brazil, culture shock, expat life, language issues, and Latin American topics, in English or Portuguese (or if you want to get fancy, Spanish too).

Feel free to submit your guest post at riogringaconsult at gmail dot com.

Love Petition

After seeing this wonderful story, I thought I'd do a little something here to collect thoughts about Eliseu. His visa interview is next week, and he's very anxious to get it over with. We have a huge folder full of "evidence of relationship," but I thought it'd be fun to open up the comments for people to write about him and us. If they're good, he can print them and add them to the documents.

So I'll go first.

First off, I tend to think love is gross. I hate PDA and sappy couples and women who can't shut up about their significant other, and I try to avoid doing all three, but inevitably, I have found it difficult to do so. I at least try to keep it to a minimum, but in this case I'll make an exception.

Though we couldn't come from more different places, I really believe that a twist of fate brought us together, because we are frighteningly good for each other, like two lost puzzle pieces. Our personalities and lifestyles are so compatible that I was surprised how easy it was when we first moved in together, especially since he's so flexible and easy going. Whenever we have a problem, we work it out, and he always apologizes eventually, when he knows it's his turn to do so. He's incredibly thoughtful, and always willing to help out. He's open-minded and willing to accept new ideas, especially when they're important to me. If I care deeply about something, he'll make a point to learn about it and share my interest in it. One example of this is the Goldman case: he has been absolutely vital during the entire campaign, spreading the word to Brazilians, helping with translations, running errands, and editing and loading lots of videos on to Youtube.

Similarly, I've learned to appreciate new things from him, like his love of nature and saving the environment, Brazilian music, and graphic design. We have so many things in common, so many things we both enjoy, that it's easy to get along. The only serious diverging interests we have are action movies vs. chick flicks, and SWAT vs. no SWAT. [SWAT is a computer game about war and I do not like it one bit, especially since he'll play for hours at a time. Luckily, it's not coming with him to the States.]

We've grown so close that for the month we've been apart, I've felt like something is always missing, the kind of feeling you have when you get to work and realize you left your cell phone at home, or your purse in a cab. I feel hollow when he's not here.

He's funny and witty, making a point to make me laugh all the time. He's insanely sweet. He's beautiful. He's endlessly patient. He's the kindest, gentlest person I've ever met. And we love each other fiercely.

I'll do whatever it takes so we can be together, even if it means initially getting married in a quick civil ceremony rather than a big blowout wedding I really want (we're planning on doing that in two years, when he gets his residency). And he'll do whatever it takes too, since he's moving to a country he's never been to and is starting off at his in-laws' house. Sometimes I wonder if he's something of a saint. I am so grateful to have him.

If you have any thoughts you'd like to share about Eli or why you agree he should come to the US, please leave them in the comments, and I'll put them in a document for Eli to print and bring to the interview.

Showdown

Well. It's been quite a showdown. David appeared on every major news channel in the US yesterday, including NBC, CNN, and CBS. CBS even went the extra mile and researched the Lins e Silva's ties to the President, amongst others, which you can see here and here. He was also the leading story on Larry King. Dateline is doing a full hour show on Friday night and an update on Sunday, and Anderson Cooper is rumored to be developing a big segment about the case. Read: the merda has hit the fan.

Rather than rehash it, I've included some of the coverage here from Brazil and the US, as well as Congressman Smith's fiery speech in Congress yesterday. My favorite tidbit: the decision to suspend Judge Pinto's ruling was handwritten on a piece of loose leaf. I also got a big kick out of the STF's homepage. Brazil is one for contradictions, as I always say.

UPDATE: NBC's coverage from this morning below, but the real decision is coming out on June 10th, FYI.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy