Rafael Hanuman

Radio Fortaleza was full of meaning. It was the time, around 2005/2007, when a group of artists would gather on Fridays at Radio Fortaleza in Blumenau, with beers served to local personalities and a select audience.

During that period, in the first term of Lula da Silva, it is estimated that there were around 3,000 community radio stations in Brazil, playing a crucial role in local culture. The program *Entre-Mundos*, hosted by my friend Engels, was a positive revolution and an evolution.

Anderson's name was erased from the internet, just like mine, but I continue to fight. Then came América, the girl in the photo, known as Méri, with a similar program. Those who had the experience of participating in such a radio station can assess it well. It was great. It was fun.

We discussed current topics with an artistic, Marxist, sharp perspective… these forms and visions inherent to artists, without filters between what we thought and what we said. At that time, community radio was a significant platform for underground communication.



EARLY PERSPECTIVES

First, the internet took the place of the beloved radio amateur, the device used to tune into any radio station anywhere in the world.

We would spend the night changing frequencies and saying “over,” until we found someone from another part of the world.

These encounters were the essence of the underground communication spirit. Then came the idea of creating a pirate radio that would move on a motorcycle. The first confrontation with false-moralistic authoritarianism, the struggle of young people against laws forbidding unauthorized transmissions.

The fight for uncensored communication. The fight to speak the truth. This is a fight we are still engaged in today, against the censorship of American media companies, who censor without further explanation, and no one finds it strange that Brazilian communication is being handled by foreign companies.

That was my first adolescence. It was also the beginning of my interest in computing and electronics, with the popularization of personal computers and the introduction of MS-DOS in 1981.

I bought magazines from the Brazilian Universal Institute and befriended the children of electronics store owners.

To get discounts, of course. I also took an MS-DOS course at 12 years old, wrote my first scripts, and began reflecting on the future of humanity. After all those years of struggle, my perspective broadened; the convergence of topics that never went out of fashion, the artistic and technical perspectives, created a sharp language.

Now, video on mobile devices has become dominant. Since the popularization of smartphones in 2008, it has taken the place of community radio in underground communication. By 2024, the number of podcasts worldwide has already surpassed 4 million. Is everything totally dominated? Has everything been lost, and lost its relevance?

The spirit remains. The soul remains rebellious. The rebellious resistance still exists. Creating a site like this is an example. Articles replace hours of programming. And interesting conversations continue, but in bars and cafés across the increasingly large and diverse cities. And soon, podcasts will be here! Or videos… whatever evolution brings.

The important thing is that the spirit remains.