Diretas Já (, Direct (Elections) Now) was a civil unrest movement which, in 1984, demanded direct presidential elections in Brazil. Participants of the movement The movement brought together diverse elements of Brazilian society. Participants came from a broad spectrum of political parties, trade unions, civil, student and journalistic leaderships. Politicians involved included Ulysses Guimarães, Tancredo Neves, André Franco Montoro, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Mário Covas, Teotônio Vilela, Dante de Oliveira, José Serra, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Eduardo Suplicy and Leonel Brizola among others. Besides politicians, the movement also included artists such as Milton Nascimento, Fernanda Montenegro, Gilberto Gil, Bruna Lombardi, Fafá de Belém, and Chico Buarque de Holanda. Journalists such as Henfil, Osmar Santos and Eliel Ramos Maurício covered the assemblies for periodicals Diário de Sorocaba and Folha de Itapetininga. Football team Corinthians, already well-known for activism with their Corinthians Democracy movement, printed "Diretas Já" on the back of their jerseys. Sectors of the Roman Catholic Church, as well as other religions, also supported the movement. Location of the first public protest The first public protest for the Diretas occurred in the emancipated town of Abreu e Lima, in Pernambuco, on March 31, 1983. Periodicals of the state of Pernambuco, at the time, organized members of the PMDB party in the city, which were followed by protests in the capital of the state of Goiás, Goiânia, on June 15, 1983, as well as the Charles Miller Plaza, in front of Pacaembu Stadium, on November 27, 1983 in São Paulo. Economic situation The growth of the movement coincided with the aggravation of an economic crisis (with an annual inflation of 239% in 1983). This led to the mobilization of class entities and unions. The movement linked representatives from diverse political backgrounds under the common cause of direct elections for president. Many pro-status quo politicians, sensitive to their base, had also formed a block of disagreement within "ARENA", the pro-government party, when PDS was founded. In the following year, the movement gained critical mass and was able to mobilize itself openly. On the anniversary of the city of São Paulo (January 25), the first great assembly of the campaign for direct elections for president was made possible by André Franco Montoro, then-governor of São Paulo, on Praça da Sé, a major public square adjacent to the São Paulo Cathedral (Catedral da Sé). By this time the Military Regime had lost a great