Brazil contends with more gun ownership – and a rising gun culture

Clad in protective goggles and pink earmuffs, Brenda Provesi looks straight into the camera and gushes about the semi-automatic, .40-caliber rifle she’s cradling in her arms.

“The trigger on this one is really nice,” says Ms. Provesi, who lives in the southern Brazilian city of Navegantes and runs Gunpowder and Blush, a YouTube channel for gun enthusiasts.

She pulls the trigger with a manicured finger, pumping bullets into a pink paper target a few meters away. “It’s a great weapon to start out with – for your wife, your daughter, your girlfriend,” she says.

Not long ago, few Brazilians could lay their hands on firearms like the one Ms. Provesi . But thanks to dozens of legal changes under the government of former President Jair