Live-Streamed Terror: Brazil’s Online Extremist Networks
From the Live-Streaming of a Brutal Attack on a Homeless Man to a Culture of Cruelty—How Dogolachan, 764, and Their Offshoots Produce Violence in Brazil.
On February 18, two men in Rio de Janeiro live-streamed a brutal attack on Discord. One, wearing a skull mask, held two Molotov cocktails while the other filmed. Together, they set a homeless man on fire as an audience of 200 Discord users cheered them on. The man survived but suffered severe burns across his body.
The attackers (who were later arrested by the BR police) were members of 696, a Brazilian offshoot of the 764 extremist group. In Brazil, where the Dogolachan network has long fostered online and offline violent extremism, groups like 764 have found a foothold.
In Brazil, offshoots of Dogolachan and 764 have been linked in recent years to numerous school shootings and the sexual exploitation of minors. Much of the activity of the groups occurs within Discord servers, where members encourage one another to engage in acts of extreme cruelty for so-called “Luls”—a term used to describe deriving pleasure from the suffering of others. This manifests in various forms, including self-harm, the torture of animals, violent attacks, and the sexual abuse of minors.
A key indicator of affiliation with the Dogolachan ideology is the skull mask worn by one of the attackers. While globally associated with far-right circles, in Brazil, it has become a symbol tied specifically to Dogolachan-inspired school shooters.
Many of these attacks are later glorified through edited videos, serving as a badge of honor for those affiliated with these extremist groups. The videos, featuring live-streamed abuse from Discord servers, are set to music and stylized to amplify their impact and are shared through various social media.
Although Discord deleted the original server and banned many users, new servers linked to Dogolachan still exist, some with hundreds of members.