Lessons from Latin America: Innovations in Politics, Culture, and Development

by Kirk Bowman, Felipe Arocena

Overview

Since the early 1980s, Latin American countries have been innovative in a range of policy and cultural experiences, including health care, voting, pensions, and multiculturalism. And yet, their policy innovations are rarely found in textbooks. This book addresses that gap, providing a fascinating and wide-ranging exploration of both the history of "looking down" at Latin America and the political, economic, and cultural "lessons" (including successes, failures, and unintended consequences) that should inform important policy discussions around the world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781442605497
Publisher:	University of Toronto Press
Publication date:	08/05/2014
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Kirk Bowman is Professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at the Georgia Institute of Technology. His most recent book is Peddling Paradise: The Politics of Tourism in Latin America (2013).
Felipe Arocena is Professor of Sociology at the Universidad de la República, Uruguay. He has published or edited 10 books, including 2 in the United States: William Henry Hudson: Life, Literature, and Science (2003) and Entrevistas Cubanas: Historias de una Nación Dividida (2004). He has been Visiting Professor at several universities in Europe, Latin America, and North America, including Dartmouth College, Université du Québec à Montréal, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and the Catholic University of America.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

Introduction



1. Would You Like to go to South America?

Part I: Politics: Elections and Participation

2. Gender and Representation

3. Counting the Votes and Aggregating Political Preferences

4. Demilitarization and Peace Promotion



Part II: Cultural Rights: Racism, Discrimination and Multiculturalism

5. The Awakening of Indigenous Culture: The Case of Bolivia

6. Brazil: Where Were the Blacks?

7. Latino Immigration into the United States: A Paradigm Shift from Assimilation to Multiculturalism



Part III: Social Policy, Inequality, and the Beautiful Game

8. The Delayed Revolution and the Rise of the South

9. Retirement with Dignity? Lessons from Pension Reform in Chile and Beyond

10. Global Lessons from the Beautiful Game

Conclusion



References

Index

What People are Saying About This

Jeffrey Lesser

With accessible language and pointed commentary, Lessons from Latin America shows readers how innovative policies can be applied across the globe to improve lived experiences.

Michael Burawoy

This is global sociology at its best, accessible and even lyrical. Talking across continents, Arocena and Bowman give substance to the idea that Latin America is home to some of the most innovative, socially conscious, and forward-looking institutions, belying so many sterile stereotypes. A magnificent celebration of the Latin American sociological imagination!

Lars Schoultz

An uncommonly refreshing introduction to Latin American societies, focusing on the central issues of everyday life, but also explaining the ongoing blending of the hemisphere's cultures.

Editorial Reviews

The creative and innovative approaches to democracy described would be interesting to any comparative and international education practitioner worldwide because the subject is viewed through numerous lenses with broad effects on education.—Forum for International Research in Education

This is global sociology at its best, accessible and even lyrical. Talking across continents, Arocena and Bowman give substance to the idea that Latin America is home to some of the most innovative, socially conscious, and forward-looking institutions, belying so many sterile stereotypes. A magnificent celebration of the Latin American sociological imagination!—Michael Burawoy, Professor of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley
An uncommonly refreshing introduction to Latin American societies, focusing on the central issues of everyday life, but also explaining the ongoing blending of the hemisphere's cultures.—Lars Schoultz, William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor of Political Science, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
With accessible language and pointed commentary, Lessons from Latin America shows readers how innovative policies can be applied across the globe to improve lived experiences.—Jeffrey Lesser, Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of History, Emory University

From the Publisher

The creative and innovative approaches to democracy described would be interesting to any comparative and international education practitioner worldwide because the subject is viewed through numerous lenses with broad effects on education.

Forum for International Research in Education