University in dispute: echoes of Aparício Cora de Almeida’s itineraries in the present time (Porto Alegre - RS)

ABSTRACT

This article discusses the life and death of Aparício Cora de Almeida and the repercussions of this biographical trajectory in the educational field, especially with regard to democratization of access to higher education in Rio Grande do Sul. The analyzes have as central axis the production of memories and forgetfulness around the image of this personage. A prominent student leader in the early 1930s, he was connected to movements aligned with the ideals of Córdoba (1918), which then disputed the university model that would be implemented in the state. He was also secretary of the National Liberating Alliance (ANL) in the state and a militant of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB). In a context of strong repression of political movements opposed to Flores da Cunha’s government, with arrests and suspicions of assassinations of various opponents, the death of Aparício in 1935 is surrounded by cloudy circumstances, and his biography is intertwined with the history of the Rio Grande do Sul student movement. In honor of the son’s memory, the Family donated a building that would be the first University Housing of Rio Grande do Sul, and later would be called University Housing Aparício Cora de Almeida (CEUACA). This donation was of fundamental importance to the Academic Federation of Porto Alegre (FEUPA), which would operate in the same building, offering a broad structure of student assistance, unprecedented in the state.

Keywords:
Aparício Cora de Almeida; Student Movement; University Housing; Student Accommodation; CEUACA