Forgotten Peace: Reform, Violence, and the Making of Contemporary Colombia (Volume 3) (Violence in Latin American History)

Forgotten Peace examines Colombian society’s attempt to move beyond the Western Hemisphere’s worst mid-century conflict and shows how that effort molded notions of belonging and understandings of the past. Robert A. Karl reconstructs encounters between government officials, rural peoples, provincial elites, and urban intellectuals during a crucial conjuncture that saw reformist optimism transform into alienation. In addition to offering a sweeping reinterpretation of Colombian history—including the most detailed account of the origins of the FARC insurgency in any language—Karl provides a Colombian vantage on global processes of democratic transition, development, and memory formation in the 1950s and 1960s. Broad in scope, Forgotten Peace challenges contemporary theories of violence in Latin America. "Forgotten Peace examines Colombian society's attempt to move beyond the Western Hemisphere's worst mid-century conflict and how that effort molded notions of belonging and understandings of the past. In this book, Robert A. Karl reconstructs encounters between government officials, rural peoples, provincial elites, and urban intellectuals during a crucial conjuncture that saw reformist optimism transform into alienation. In addition to offering a sweeping reinterpretation of Colombian history--including the most detailed account of the origins of the FARC insurgency in any language--Karl provides a Colombian vantage on global processes of democratic transition, development, and memory formation in the 1950s and 1960s. Sweeping in scope, Forgotten Peace challenges contemporary theories of violence in Latin America."--Provided by publisher. This book examines Colombian society's attempt to move beyond the Western Hemisphere's worst mid-century conflict and shows how that effort molded notions of belonging and understandings of the past. The book reconstructs encounters between government officials, rural peoples, provincial elites, and urban intellectuals during a crucial conjuncture that saw reformist optimism transform into alienation. In addition to offering a sweeping reinterpretation of Colombian history—including the most detailed account of the origins of the FARC insurgency in any language—the book provides a Colombian vantage on global processes of democratic transition, development, and memory formation in the 1950s and 1960s. Broad in scope, this book challenges contemporary theories of violence in Latin America. Contents List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction: Peace and Violence in Colombian History 1. Messenger of a New Colombia 2. Encounters with Violence, 1957–1958 3. The Making of the Creole Peace, 1958–1960 4. Peace and Violence, 1959–1960 5. Reformist Paths, 1960–1964 6. Books and Bandits, 1962–1964 7. Confrontation, 1963–1966 Epilogue: The Making of “La Violencia” A Note on Citations, Institutional Abbreviations, and Archives Notes Bibliography Index Examines Colombian society's attempt to move beyond the Western Hemisphere's worst mid-century conflict and how that effort molded notions of belonging and understandings of the past. In this book, the author reconstructs encounters between government officials, rural peoples, provincial elites, and more.