Acre celebrates 64 years with special programming in Rio Branco

Known as "the state that fought to be Brazilian", Acre celebrates 64 years this Monday (15) and will have a special program with a performance by the military band, raising of the flag and speeches by authorities, at Calçadão da Gameleira, in Rio Branco.

The ceremony begins at 4:30 pm with the accreditation of guests. Afterwards there will be a reception with a performance by the Military Police band, the ceremony is scheduled to start at 5 pm and at 5:10 pm the Acre Flag will be replaced. (Check out the full schedule below)

This Monday, g1 is remembering the legacy of José Augusto, the first elected governor of Acre. Born in Feijó, in the interior of the state, José Augusto took office on March 1, 1963 with the mission of transforming Acre into the model state of the federation after political emancipation.

Acre’s 64th birthday

Acre was 'the territory that fought to become a state', 'the state that fought for the preservation of the forest against the agricultural policy of the Military Dictatorship' and even 'the state that fights to prove that it exists despite memes on the internet'. (Check out details about the state's history below)

In 2022, g1 brought this part of the story, told by historian Marcos Vinícius Neves. With the end of the Acre Revolution, the creation of the federal territory of Acre caused surprise. This is because everyone expected that Acre would become a state or, in the worst case scenario, would be annexed to Amazonas.

The Treaty of Petrópolis, signed on November 17, 1903, sealed the integration of Acre into Brazil, bringing with it great expectations. On the one hand, the government of Amazonas and businesspeople in the region supported annexation to the state, to guarantee control of the rubber market.

On the other hand, the colonizers of Acre dreamed of being incorporated into the Federation independently. However, contrary to everyone's expectations, President Rodrigues Alves decided to transform Acre into a federal territory under the command of the Union.

According to the historian, the exclusive model caused the Brazilian government to look for references in other countries to establish an administrative structure for the territory.

"This system was so strange and so new, that they didn't even know how to organize Acre, the federal territory. They then decided to create a mixed system of the Argentine system, the Bolivian system and the North American system of territories and divided Acre into three departments, autonomous from each other", said the historian.

In 1904, along with the creation of the federal territory of Acre, the departments were created: Alto Acre, Alto Purus and Alto Juruá. Each of these departments was governed by a departmental mayor, appointed by the presidency of the Republic.

And also, each department had a capital. In the case of Vale do Acre, two cities were options: Xapuri and Rio Branco, which at the time was called Volta da Empreza. Rio Branco was chosen.

Anyway status

From 1910 to 1960, the federal government continued to decide who governed Acre and how the state would function. It was only in 1962 that bill No. 4,070 was approved, authored by then federal deputy Guiomard do Santos, himself a former state governor appointed by the federal government.

The project was the result of a negotiation that lasted five years. On June 15 of the same year, President João Goulart sanctioned the law that gave autonomy to Acre. At this point in history, 60 years had already passed since the beginning of the Acrean Revolution.

In the same year, an election pitted the 'father of the state of Acre', José Guiomard Santos, against an almost unknown politician, José Augusto de Araújo. To the shock of the political class, Araújo won. In his favor, the fact that he was from Acre and was competing with a Minas Gerais native weighed in.

"Acre had suffered so much at the hands of those who came from outside, who took advantage of the best that Acre had and left nothing, that the people from Acre elected the Acreian and not Guiomard Santos, who was born in Minas Gerais", explained Neves.

The joy, however, would be short-lived. The military coup of 1964 would soon come and the first governor elected by Acreans would be deposed. A new fight would begin.

State anniversary celebration schedule

Location: Gameleira Boardwalk

Address: Rua Senador Eduardo Assmar

Neighborhood: August 6

4:30 pm – Guest registration

4:40 pm – Presentation by the Acre Military Police Band

5pm – Start of the ceremony

5:10 pm – Replacement Ceremony of the Flag of the State of Acre

5:30 pm – Honors award ceremony

5:50 pm – Authorities’ statement

6pm – Closing of the ceremony and speech by Governor Mailza Assis