Italian immigrants, socialism and the first major peasants' strike

Abstract

The Italian immigration to São Paulo history, as indeed much of the immigration process to Brazil, is closely tied to the history of coffee oligarchy of the Old Republic and its repressive methods to subject the workers to an accelerated accumulation of capital. The purpose of this article is to present and analyze the political forces in what is now called first great strike of immigrant farm workers in São Paulo. The Italian settlers' strike occurred in April and May 1913, in Ribeirao Preto. The farmers response to regard the strike as an act of war of the peasants led to results far beyond the immediate defeat of the workers.