In the last few days there have been reports on two interesting and very different forms of activism emerging from Sapopemba in São Paulo, that capture some of the ways Brazil's social movements are reinventing themselves in today's challenging political context

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Sapopemba is a low-income district in the east zone of São Paulo where I have conducted research over the last 5 years. It has been a hub of grassroots activism since Brazil's redemocratisation in the 1980s and appears to be continuing that tradition today

First: a new citywide organisation 'Brigada Pela Vida' (a pun meaning both "thank you for life" and "brigade for life") has been created, with local groups across São Paulo. The Sapopemba group has been particularly active, as Vera Schattan describes here

http://novosestudos.uol.com.br/pandemia-mobilizacao-social-e-atencao-primaria-a-saude-na-cidade-de-sao-paulo/

The "Brigadas" seek a territorialised response to Covid-19 by joining up local activists, organisations & frontline service workers (like health professionals, teachers & social workers) to gather data & carry out targeted actions.
Their website is here: http://brigadaspelavida.com.br/index.php 

Sapopemba is the district worst affected by Covid, with well over 400 confirmed deaths to date: https://g1.globo.com/sp/sao-paulo/noticia/2020/08/04/periferias-de-sao-paulo-seguem-na-lideranca-do-ranking-de-bairros-com-mais-mortes-por-covid-19.ghtml

This might help to explain why the local Brigada has been so active, carrying out street by street consciousness raising operations across the whole territory

Another, very different, example relates to the growing visibility of black, LGBT artist-activists. Yesterday there was a report in the Guardian about two, both of whom are from Sapopemba: Jupp do Bairro and Linn da Quebrada

https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2020/aug/12/brazil-black-trans-musicians-linn-da-quebrada-jup-do-bairro-badsista?CMP=twt_gu&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=&__twitter_impression=true

I recently interviewed the agent of these artists, Thiago, who is also a resident and activist in Sapopemba. He told me about some of their current activities, including a new collective they have created called "Periferia Preta" (Black Periphery): https://www.instagram.com/periferiapreta/ 

The collective is opening a new cultural centre in the area (on hold due to Covid) & are holding online events. Although not actively involved in the Covid response, Thiago linked the pandemic to genocidal treatment of black, peripheral & LGBT populations

Brigada Pela Vida & Periferia Preta are new & interesting models of activism

They are very different – the 1st has an older membership, includes state agents & militants with ties to the PT. However, it is novel in its intersectoral/territorial, networked and frontline approach

The 2nd is a consciously "horizontal" organisation of younger people, without ties to parties or the state. Its proposal is to create physical and online spaces that can "acolher" (shelter) marginalised groups & develop political consciousness through culture and debate

Sapopemba has long been a pioneer in developing new forms of social mobilisation, from housing movements, to health councils, to human rights activism. These initiatives may be representative of wider/longer-term shifts & also revealing of their potentials & limitations