Bolsonaro Lauds Protesters Taking to Streets Despite Virus Risk

  • Supporters gather across Brazil, egged on by their leader
  • Social media images show at-risk elderly among the crowd
President Bolsonaro takes a selfie photograph with supporters at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia on March 15.Photographer: Andre Coelho/Bloomberg
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Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro applauded a series of pro-government, anti-Congress protests around the country on Sunday, three days after suggesting they would be canceled due the risk of coronavirus spread.

Bolsonaro joined a demonstration in Brasilia. In a live broadcast on social media, he distributed more than a dozen fist bumps to supporters outside of the presidential palace, protected behind two parallel waist-high grids.