Becoming Lula

This chapter demonstrates that the essential elements of Lula’s discourse and leadership practice were present before the May 1978 strikes that made the union president famous. The November 1974 elections and their aftermath led the incoming administration of Ernesto Geisel to promise a slow, gradual, but secure political transition (abertura). It shows how Lula declared independence from Vidal and Frei Chico, assumed full command in the union, and crafted a bolder articulation of workers’ interests that placed them on the public agenda. Having faced fear and uncertainty head-on, Lula emerged as the intriguing personality with an enduring self-representation as free and independent: the fearless self-made-man, with no strings attached.