Introduction

Abstract

The question of the extension of citizenship through governance structures has long been central in the study of participatory democracy. Based on theories of citizenship and governance, this chapter offers an overview of the political background that allowed participatory democracy in Brazil to flourish and the challenges involved in maintaining the structures of citizen participation. Departing from the idea of citizenship beyond the acquisition of legal rights perspective, this chapter introduces the main focus of the book, which is to explain how participatory citizenship in Brazil has changed since the abrupt government move to the right in 2016. This chapter also presents the structure of the book, focusing on the key themes related to the contemporary challenges for participatory citizenship.