The New Latin American Left: Cracks in the Empire (Critical Currents in Latin American Perspective Series)

The resurgence of the Left in Latin America has shifted the entire political landscape in the hemisphere and, indeed, worldwide. The new Latin American Left has challenged the neoliberal order and placed socialism back on the agenda. In the process, it has raised fundamental questions over political struggle and social change in this age of global capitalism. Webber and Carr have assembled an expert interdisciplinary team on the theory and practice of the twenty-first-century Latin American Left. The contributions take up a variety of theoretical issues, ranging from political strategy to neoliberal class formation and the prospects of revolution, as well as cutting-edge case studies, among them the burgeoning social movements of the indigenous, the landless, workers and the poor, to Argentina's experience, the Mexican Left, and Venezuela's experiment in twenty-first-century socialism. This volume is must reading for all those who wish to understand the political thunder emanating from Latin America and the insights it offers for transformative possibilities around the world in this new century. This Anthology--bringing Together Political Scientists, Anthropologists, Historians, Sociologists, Economists, And Journalists--provides A Serious And Sophisticated Theoretical And Historical Analysis Of The State Of The Latin American Left. The Central Thematic Issues Are Addressed, Followed By A Number Of Case Studies Written By The Most Astute Radical Left Observers Of The Contemporary Setting-- Introduction: The Latin American Left In Theory And Practice / Jeffery R. Webbe, Barry Carr -- Socialist Strategies In Latin America / Claudio Katz -- The Latin American Left In The Face Of The New Imperialism / Henry Veltmeyer -- Neoliberal Class Formation(s): The Informal Proletariat And New Workers' Organizations In Latin America / Susan Spronk -- Revolution In Times Of Neoliberal Hegemony: The Political Strategy Of The Mst In Brazil And The Ezln In Mexico / Leandro Vergara-camus -- Barrio Women And Popular Politics In Chavez's Venezuela / Sujatha Fernandes -- From Left-indigenous Insurrection To Reconstituted Neoliberalism In Bolivia: Political Economy, Indigenous Liberation, And Class Struggle, 2000-2011 / Jeffery R. Webber -- Venezuela: An Electoral Road To Twenty-first-century Socialism? / Gregory Wilpert -- Ecuador: Indigenous Struggles And The Ambiguities Of Electoral Power / Marc Becker -- Crisis And Recomposition In Argentina / Emilia Castorina -- Trade Unions, Social Conflict, And The Political Left In Present-day Brazil: Between Breach And Compromise / Ricardo Antunes -- Neoliberal Authoritarianism, The Democratic Transition, And The Mexican Left / Richard Roman, Edur Velasco Arregui -- The Chilean Left After 1990: An Izquierda Permitida Championing Transnational Capital, A Historical Left Ensnared In The Past, And A New Radical Left In Gestation / Fernando Leiva -- From Guerrillas To Government: The Continued Relevance Of The Central American Left / Hector Perla Jr., Marco Mojica, Jared Bibler -- The Overthrow Of A Moderate And The Birth Of A Radicalizing Resistance: The Coup Against Manuel Zelaya And The History Of Imperialism And Popular Struggle In Honduras / Todd Gordon, Jeffery R. Webber. Edited By Jeffery R. Webber And Barry Carr. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Contents 6 Chapter 1. Introduction: The Latin American Left inTheory and Practice 8 Part I. THEORETICAL ISSUES 36 Chapter 2. Socialist Strategies in Latin America 38 Chapter 3. The Latin American Left in the Face of the New Imperialism 56 Chapter 4. Neoliberal Class Formation(s): The Informal Proletariat and “New” Workers’ Organizations in Latin America 82 Chapter 5. Revolution in Times of Neoliberal Hegemony: The Political Strategy of the MST in Brazil and the EZLN in Mexico 102 Chapter 6. Barrio Women and Popular Politics in Chávez’s Venezuela 124 Part II. CASE STUDIES OF THE NEW LATIN AMERICAN LEFT 154 Chapter 7. From Left-Indigenous Insurrection to Reconstituted Neoliberalism in Bolivia: Political Economy, Indigenous Liberation, and Class Struggle, 2000–2011 156 Chapter 8. Venezuela: An Electoral Road to Twenty-First-Century Socialism? 198 Chapter 9. Ecuador: Indigenous Struggles and the Ambiguities of Electoral Power 220 Chapter 10. Crisis and Recomposition in Argentina 240 Chapter 11. Trade Unions, Social Conflict, and the Political Left in Present-Day Brazil: Between Breach and Compromise 262 Chapter 12. Neoliberal Authoritarianism, the “Democratic Transition,” and the Mexican Left 284 Chapter 13. The Chilean Left after 1990: An Izquierda Permitida Championing Transnational Capital, a Historical Left Ensnared in the Past, and a New Radical Left in Gestation 306 Chapter 14. From Guerrillas to Government: The Continued Relevance of the Central American Left 334 Chapter 15. The Overthrow of a Moderate and the Birth of a Radicalizing Resistance: The Coup against Manuel Zelaya and the History of Imperialism and Popular Struggle in Honduras 364 Index 390 This provocative, multidisciplinary work explores the dramatic resurgence of the Left in Latin America since the late 1990s. Offering a comprehensive account of the complexities and nuances of the shifting political tides in the region, the book provides both a theoretical framework for assessing the state of the Left and a set of cases highlighting key movements, successes, and failures. Its theoretical scope covers socialist strategy, working-class formation, peasant social movements, the role of women in popular politics, and the response of outside powers. These themes provide the foundation for rich country studies of the new Left in Bolivia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. Too often, the book argues, the rise of the new Left has been the subject of caricature, either through conservative defamation or populist romanticism. Working from a range of critical perspectives, the contributors consider the Lefts hopes, aims, and prospects, as well as its contradictions and fissures. As the first book to systematically consider the contemporary relevance of the Left, it will be central to any understanding of Latin American politics and society today. Contributions Ricardo Antunes, Marc Becker, Jared Bibler, Barry Carr, Emilia Castorina, Todd Gordon, Sujatha Fernandes, Claudio Katz, Fernando Leiva, Marco Mojica, Hctor Perla Jr., Richard Roman, Susan Spronk, Edur Velasco Arregui, Henry Veltmeyer, Leandro Vergara-Camus, Jeffery R. Webber, and Gregory Wilpert. The resurgence of the Left in Latin America has shifted the entire political landscape in the hemisphere and, indeed, worldwide. The new Latin American Left has challenged the neoliberal order and placed socialism back on the agenda. In the process, it has raised fundamental questions over political struggle and social change in this age of global capitalism. Webber and Carr have assembled an expert interdisciplinary team on the theory and practice of the twenty-first-century Latin American Left. The contributions take up a variety of theoretical issues, ranging from political strategy to neoliberal class formation and the prospects of revolution, as well as cutting-edge case studies, among them the burgeoning social movements of the indigenous, the landless, workers and the poor, to Argentina's experience, the Mexican Left, and Venezuela's experiment in twenty-first-century socialism. This volume is a must-read for all those who wish to understand the political thunder emanating from Latin America and the insights it offers for transformative possibilities around the world in this new century. "This anthology--bringing together political scientists, anthropologists, historians, sociologists, economists, and journalists--provides a serious and sophisticated theoretical and historical analysis of the state of the Latin American Left. The central thematic issues are addressed, followed by a number of case studies written by the most astute radical Left observers of the contemporary setting"--Résumé de l'éditeur