José do Patrocínio

José Carlos do Patrocínio (9 October 1854 – 29 January 1905) was a Brazilian writer, journalist, activist, orator and pharmacist. He was among the most well-known proponents of the abolition of slavery in Brazil, and known as "Tigre da Abolição" (The Tiger of Abolition).

On September 7, 1880, along with Joaquim Nabuco and André Rebouças, Patricínio founded the Brazilian Anti-Slavery Society

In 1885, he visited his hometown, Campos dos Goytacazes, where he was welcomed in triumph. When he returned to Rio de Janeiro, he brought with him his aging and sick mother who would pass away at the end of year. Her funeral became an important political moment in favor of abolition, attended by notable figures such as Minister Rodolfo Dantas, jurist Rui Barbosa, and future presidents Campos Sales and Prudente de Morais.

The following year in 1886, he entered politics and was elected to the Rio de Janeiro city council in a landslide victory

He was involved with Freemasonry and their efforts to end slavery. He continued to work with the Brazilian Anti-slavery Society, supporting their efforts to gain momentum for the abolitionist cause with the Brazilian Parliament and white elites.

In September 1887, he left the Gazeta da Tarde to found and direct a new newspaper, A Cidade do Rio (Rio City). He used his position at the helm of this newspaper to intensify his political activity. Many of the most important journalists of the time made contributions to this paper and they were often encouraged by Patrocinio himself. It was while he was at this paper, that after ten years of intense activism, he learned of the abolition of slavery in Brazil on May 13, 1888. Soon after the signing of the Lei Aurea, the law that officially ended slavery, Patricinio went to the Imperial Palace that was in the midst of massive celebrations, and approached Princess Isabel. He kneeled in front of her and kissed her hand. Many other abolitionists followed him and did the same.

After abolition was finally achieved, public opinion and attention turned to the fight for a republican government. However, because of his appreciation to Isabel for her support for abolition, A Cidade do Rio and even Patrocínio himself became supporters of the monarchy. During this period, he became an “Isabelista”, or someone who supported the reign of the Princess Isabel.

At the time of the establishment of a republican government on November 15, 1889, Patricínio was serving as a city councilman in Rio de Janeiro. He read the official proclamation on the establishment of the republic to a group gathered at city hall while Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca was sick and away from city hall.

After the foundation of the Republic in 1889, Patrocínio came into conflict with the government of Marshal Floriano Peixoto over Patricínio’s support for the Navy Revolt against the newly established republic. He was arrested and sent to Cucuí on the upper Rio Negro, in the state of Amazonas and A Cidade do Rio was suspended by the government.

Soon after, in 1879 Patrocínio published many of his accounts as the novel Os Retirantes (The Migrants). The novel further details the plight of many Brazilians from the northeast as they were forced to migrate south due to severe drought. It also explores themes of extreme poverty and violence against women. The novel had a major impact on the local literary scene and helped create the genre of "literature of the drought" (literatura da seca) that explored the same themes in the following decades.

Death Patrocínio remained an active journalist after his exile up to his death on 29 January 1905, at the age of 50. He died during a speech in honor of Alberto Santos-Dumont at the Teatro Lírico in Rio de Janeiro, due to hemoptysis. His funeral procession was attended by approximately 10,000 people. Pedro Espanhol (1884)

Representations in popular culture Patrocínio was portrayed by Antonio Pitanga in the 1969 telenovel Sangue do Meu Sangue, by Kadu Karneiro in its 1995 remake, by Valter Santos in the 1988 miniseries Abolição and by Maurício Gonçalves in the 1999 miniseries Chiquinha Gonzaga.