A Popular University in Brazil for the People: the Way this Can Be Achieved

Resumo

This article addresses the question of the importance of holding a debate about the current project to set up a people´s university in Brazil, It is argued that a point of departure can be suggested for an in-depth approach to this question on the basis of the Marxist concept of history – which means that a people´s university can only exist in a future socialist State. According to Marx, the State represents the interests of the bourgoisie and as such, it is not in its interests to offer equal educational opportunities for everyone. The struggle for a people´s university – and for people´s education in general – must form a part of the struggle to replace the capitalist system with a socialist State. The big problem is to define how, in the light of current conditions, a pathway to socialism can be pursued. In this article, stress is laid on the importance of the “historic bloc” put forward by A. Gramsci and this, together with the legacy of L. C. Prestes, draws attention to the need to take account of forms of transition or approximation to revolutionary power, thus paving the way for a socialist revolution.