The Comb War

The Comb War (as it is known) was a protest that began on December 8th, 1959 in Curitiba. There was then a campaign to increase tax collection called "Your Coupon worth a Million”. The promotion was to gather proof of purchase tax and replace it with a coupon that would give the right to participate in a lottery to a million of Cruzeiros. A retired lieutenant of the Military Police of Paraná bought a comb in a store at Tiradentes Square and demanded the cupom to the Lebanese businessman Ahmed Najar, which was denied. There was a discussion between them, a melee and the lieutenant had his leg fractured. One hundred and twenty stores of Arabs, Jews, Italians and also Brazilians, but all known as "Turks", were vandalized in the region. The army took over control of the turmoil, emptying the surrounding area. The interference of the army led to the closure of predatory riot after three days.