7.2: Latin America
7.2.1: Overview of Latin American Development and State Forms
Read this article. The Argentinean political scientist Guillermo O'Donnell has compared Brazil and Argentina in the 1960s to explain bureaucratic-authoritarianism emerging at that time. Drawing on dependency theory (which assumes that resources will flow from poorer peripheral nations to wealthier core nations), he argues that dependent development in Latin America had led to sharpening class cleavages within Latin American countries. This explains both the dictatorships of the 1960s and 1970s as well as the growth of a technocratic elite that had emerged as a result of state-led industrialization. In Latin America, modernization has led to increasingly repressive governments. The rise in the popularity of socialist and revolutionary military movements is the result of backlash against the technocratic elite.
7.2.2: Latin American Social Welfare and Economic Programs
Watch this video. The goal of conditional cash transfer programs is to alleviate poverty by making social welfare programs contingent on the actions of the recipient, generally related to children's health care and education. Why have these programs seen such a proliferation in Latin American countries? Are they effective?
Read this report. What are some of the criticisms of cash transfer programs? Why do the authors argue that "poverty targeted" programs are more effective than categorical ones?
Read this article. What are some of the debates and challenges of microfinancing in developing countries? What is the true value of microfinance as a development tool?
Read this article. Why does Bateman believe that microcredit has been so destructive in Latin America? What evidence does he offer to back up his argument?
7.2.3: Latin American Case Studies
7.2.3.1: Columbia
Read this article. Colombia has suffered decades of civil conflict and violence between various left- and right-wing paramilitary groups, exacerbated in large part by the drug trade. Over the past several years, the country's largest rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army (FARC) has been tentatively engaging in peace talks with the Colombian government. In the reading, Abbott analyzes the conflict from a socio-psychological perspective "gain a more equitable perception of reality." What policies and strategies does he suggest can accurately address these realities?
7.2.3.2: Mexico
Read this report. When NAFTA was first proposed in 1993, it set off a vigorous debate between its supporters and opponents over trade and investment policy between the United States and Mexico. Over twenty years after its enactment, economists, journalists, and policymakers began full-scale assessments of its impact. According to the report's authors, has NAFTA been a success, failure, or a combination of both?