Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
17 quotes
Biography
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist and former metalworker who has served as president of Brazil since 2023 and from 2003 to 2011. He is a member of the Workers' Party.
"Look, my friend. I don't speak the language here, I've got no money, the food stinks, there's no rice, no beans. I'd rather be arrested in Brazil than stay in this dump of a country."
"I am the son of an illiterate father and mother."
"Brazil is in a solid position. In the past, if the United States sneezed, we caught pneumonia. Today, if the United States sneezes, we sneeze too."
"The foundation is in place, and now we have to get to work."
"From an ethical point of view the price difference is grotesque and from a political point of view, it represents a lack of respect, as though a sick Brazilian is inferior."
"If the US is the country that most contributes with greenhouse gases, in the world, it should assume more responsibility to reduce emissions."
"A long time ago I learned not to put the blame for backwardness in Brazil on the US. We have to blame ourselves. Our backwardness is caused by an elite which for a century didn't think about the majority and subordinated itself to foreign interests."
"This is a crisis that was caused by people, white with blue eyes. And before the crisis they looked as if they knew everything about economics."
"I want to know if the people are in the shit and I want to take the people out of the shit in which they are." – during a speech in São Luís, the capital of the Brazilian state of Maranhão. After recognizing he cursed, he stated: "Of course I cursed. Tomorrow, commentators of the major newspapers will say that Lula cursed, but I'm aware that they curse more than I do everyday, and I'm aware of how the poor people of this country live."
"Se tem uma coisa que eu me orgulho, neste País, é que não tem uma viva alma mais honesta do que eu. Nem dentro da Polícia Federal, nem dentro do Ministério Público, nem dentro da igreja católica, nem dentro da igreja evangélica. Pode ter igual, mas eu duvido."
"What we can’t have is this country being run governed by a bunch of lunatics. The country doesn’t deserve this and above all the people do not deserve this. Brazil is adrift — so far he doesn’t know what to do."
"Does anyone really think the US is going to favour Brazil? [...] Americans think of themselves first, second, third, fourth, fifth – and if there’s any time left over they think about Americans. And these Brazilian lackeys go around thinking the Americans will do anything for us."
"Toda noite me pergunto por que é que todos os países estão obrigados a fazer seu comércio lastreado no dólar. Por que é que nós não podemos fazer o nosso comércio lastreado na nossa moeda? Por que é que nós não temos o compromisso de inovar? Quem é que decidiu que era o dólar a moeda, depois que desapareceu o ouro como paridade?"
"O Brasil condena a invasão da Ucrânia pela Rússia."
"Toda vez que a gente fala de combater as drogas, possivelmente fosse mais fácil a gente combater os nossos viciados internamente. Os usuários, os usuários são responsáveis pelos traficantes que são vítimas dos usuários também."
"Germany announced on January 25 that it would send tanks to Ukraine, in a significant escalation of the NATO proxy war against Russia. Berlin subsequently asked Brazil to ship tank munitions to Kiev. But newly inaugurated left-wing President Lula da Silva declined to do so. Lula was a co-founder of the BRICS bloc, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. He has long called for a multipolar world, and supports South-South cooperation and regional integration. Lula has denounced Western governments for ramping up the violence in Ukraine instead of encouraging peace negotiations."
"That's my man right there, the most popular politician on earth."