Women and the State in Post-Sandinista Nicaragua

After winning a stunning and decisive victory in Nicaragua’s 1990 presidential election, Violeta Chamorro reversed much of the social and economic policy enacted by the previous Sandinista government. Cynthia Chavez Metoyer explores state-society relationships during the Chamorro administration, focusing on the effect that the postsocialist, neoliberal state has had on women. Metoyer first analyzes women’s social gains and losses during the Sandinista era. She then turns to the impact of Chamorro’s structural adjustment programs. Considering the position of women in post-Sandinista society, she provides a nuanced discussion of Nicaragua’s economic and social reality, as well as a rethinking of the ideology that underlies much development policy. Contents Introduction 1 The Party's Over— and the Kitchen's a Mess 2 The Empress Has No Clothes 3 Once upon a Time: A Tale of Structural Adjustment 4 Invisible Adjustment? 5 The Politics of the Possible 6 The Sandinistas Aren't the Only Ones Who Lost Bibliography Index About the Book