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The book presents a critical analysis of the contemporary
democratic state in Latin America. Following the repressive years
of authoritarianism and the economic hardships of the debt crisis,
much hope was vested in the democratic transitions of the 1980s and
1990s. However, democracy has not resolved the inherent problems of
the Latin American state. This is due to the fact that the
underlying features of the contemporary state remain associated
with values, social relations and institutional forms that reflect
the interests of elite social groups and are closely linked to
bureaucratic authoritarianism, particularly in the Southern Cone
countries of the continent: Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay.
In a shift away from the more typical analyses of Latin American
political change during the 1990s, this book presents a more
state-centric perspective that seeks to explain why transitions to
democracy and trends towards better governance have failed to
provide more political and social stability in the continent.
Through a deeper analysis of underlying social relations and values
and how these manifest themselves through institutions, the state
is understood not purely as an institu
The nation-states and peoples of South and Central America, Cuba,
Haiti and the Dominican Republic, that together form the political
geographical region of Latin America, encompass a wide range of
societies, politics and economies. This text exposes the
differences between places, regions and countries, individuals and
societies, offering an invaluable insight into the themes of
political and economic development, and provides a guide to
understanding power and space relations. From the Antarctic to the
tropical jungles, the coastal communities to the highland villages,
the mega-cities to isolated rural existence, the political
geographies of lives, localities, cities and rurality are too
sophisticated to be subjected to generalizations. Adopting a
critical human geography perspective, Jonathon Barton provides an
understanding of similarities, difference and sophisticated human
geographies.
Latin America is a continent of diversity. The nation-states and peoples of South and Central America, Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, that together form the political geographical region of Latin America, encompass a wide range of societies, politics and economies. A Political Geography of Latin America exposes these differences between places, regions and countries, individuals and societies, offering an invaluable insight into the themes of political and economic development, and an accessible guide to understanding power and space relations. From the Antarctic to the tropical jungles, the coastal communities to the highland villages, the mega-cities to isolated rural existence, the political geographies of lives, localities, cities and rurality are too sophisticated to be subjected to generalizations. Adopting a critical human geography perspective, Jonathan Barton enables a clearer understanding of similarities, difference and sophisticated human geographies. From its starting point of difference, this book explains how it is possible to overcome the stereotyping and generalizations about the content: of dictatorship and terrorism, 'banana republics', shanty town poverty and the Latin character. Exploring Southern power-space relationships, the author also examines wider processes of globalization that are linking spaces and transgressing boundaries. Barton stresses the need for inclusionary political geography across hemispheres, nation-states, regions, races and ethnic groups, gender and sexuality, and for recognition that it is citizens who wield the power and shape the nation-states that shape them.
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