Böcker i Kellogg Institute Series on Democracy and Development-serien

The largely successful trajectory of participatory democracy in post-1988 Brazil is well documented, but much less is known about its origins in the 1970s and early 1980s. In Participatory Democracy in Brazil: Socioeconomic and Political Origins, J. Ricardo Tranjan recounts the creation of participatory democracy in Brazil. He positions the well-known Porto Alegre participatory budgeting at the end of three interrelated and partially overlapping processes: a series of incremental steps toward broader political participation taking place throughout the twentieth century; short-lived and only partially successful attempts to promote citizen participation in municipal administration in the 1970s; and setbacks restricting direct citizen participation in the 1980s. What emerges is a clearly delineated history of how socioeconomic contexts shaped Brazil's first participatory administrations. Tranjan first examines Brazil's long history of institutional exclusion of certain segments of the population and controlled inclusion of others, actions that fueled nationwide movements calling for direct citizen participation in the 1960s. He then presents three case studies of municipal administrations in the late 1970s and early 1980s that foreground the impact of socioeconomic factors in the emergence, design, and outcome of participatory initiatives. The contrast of these precursory experiences with the internationally known 1990s participatory models shows how participatory ideals and practices responded to the changing institutional context of the 1980s. The final part of his analysis places developments in participatory discourses and practices in the 1980s within the context of national-level political-institutional changes; in doing so, he helps bridge the gap between the local-level participatory democracy and democratization literatures.

Brian H. Smith's book surveys recent religious and political developments in Latin American Christianity, especially in the rapidly growing Pentecostal churches and in Catholicism. He finds that despite efforts by the Vatican to make the Latin American Church less involved in politics (in the wake of liberation theology) by the papal appointment of a whole new generation of conservative bishops since 1980, Catholicism is still very much a political force throughout the region. Catholic bishops, in spite of their conservative religious ideology, have felt obligated to preach the social doctrine of the Church and have vigorously denounced new economic models for enriching a minority of the population at the cost of the majority who are poor. Bishops also have denounced corruption in governments that has grown to epidemic proportions in recent years, and have strongly opposed legislative proposals that are anti-Catholic. Regardless of these efforts by Catholic prelates to maintain government support for the Church's institutions and its traditional moral concerns in law, Protestantism - especially in Pentecostal denominations among low-income sectors - has grown at a significant rate in the past twenty years. Although traditionally reluctant to involve themselves in politics, Pentecostals in recent years have become more active either by forming new Christian parties or by joining or supporting existing political movements. Their political agenda overlaps in some areas with that of Catholics. These shared concerns could lead to a coalition between Catholic and Pentecostal leaders that could have a real impact on public policy, given that over ninety percent of the population is now affiliated with one of these two denominations. However, Pentecostal religious and political leaders are also pushing publicly for full separation of church and state (which exists now only in Cuba and Mexico) and for all religions to have equal status in law. Both these similarities and the differences in the political agenda of Catholics and Pentecostals could complicate public policy debate in the years ahead and certainly short-circuit any attempts to remove religion as a significant, and sometimes divisive, influence in politics in newly constituted liberal democracies in Latin America.

One of the most fundamental questions for social scientists involves diffusion events; simply put, how do ideas spread and why do people embrace them? In Diffusion of Good Government: Social Sector Reforms in Brazil, Natasha Borges Sugiyama examines why innovations spread across political territories and what motivates politicians to adopt them. Sugiyama does so from the vantage point of Brazilian politics, a home to innovative social sector reforms intended to provide the poor with access to state resources. Since the late 1980s, the country has undergone major policy transformations as local governments have gained political, fiscal, and administrative autonomy. For the poor and other vulnerable groups, local politics holds special importance: municipal authorities provide essential basic services necessary for their survival, including social assistance, education, and health care. Brazil, with over 5,000 municipalities with a wide variety of political cultures and degrees of poverty, thus provides ample opportunities to examine the spread of innovative programs to assist such groups. Sugiyama delves into the politics of social sector reforms by examining the motivations for emulating well-regarded programs. To uncover the mechanisms of diffusion, her analysis contrasts three paradigmatic models for how individuals choose to allocate resources: by advancing political self-interest to gain electoral victories; by pursuing their ideological commitments for social justice; or by seeking to demonstrate adherence to the professional norms of their fields. Drawing on a mixed-method approach that includes extensive field research and statistical analysis on the spread of model programs in education (especially Bolsa Escola, a school grant program) and health (Programa Saude da Familia, a family health program), she concludes that ideological convictions and professional norms were the main reasons why mayors adopted these programs, with electoral incentives playing a negligible role.

Recent changes imposed by the Vatican may redefine the Chilean and Peruvian Church's involvement in politics and social issues. Fleet and Smith argue that the Vatican has been moving to restrict the Chilean and Peruvian Church's social and political activities. Fleet and Smith have gathered documentary evidence, conducted interviews with Catholic elites, and compiled surveys of lay Catholics in the region. The result will help chart the future of the Church and Chile and Peru.

Ruth Berins Collier and David Collier are political scientists who use comparative historical research to discover and evaluate patterns and sources of political change. Their work is an overall analysis of Chile, Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Venezuela, and Mexico, plus case studies of four distinct pairs in that group: Chile/Brazil, Uruguay/Colombia, Argentina/Peru, and Venezuela/Mexico. In addition, the Colliers meticulously describe and discuss their methods for the study including the limitations of their approach. The authors specifically focus on why and how organized labor movements in the first half of the twentieth century were incorporated into the political process in the eight Latin American countries they study. They analyze the role played by political parties, central government control, worker mobilization, and conflict between radical vs. centrist political philosophies and activities.

Since 1974 there has been a wave of democratization in the world, in particular in South America. This work examines some of the difficulties of constructing consolidated democracies and provides a critical examination of the major issues involved.

Presents original essays by a diverse group of leading and emerging scholars from North America, Europe, and Latin America. The book speaks to wide-ranging debates on democracy, the left, and citizenship in Latin America.

Aerni-Flessner studies the emergence of Lesotho as an example of the uneven ways in which people experienced development after colonialism in Africa.

Offers rich resources to understand how religion has perceived and addressed different forms of violence, from the political and state violence of the 1970s and 1980s to the drug traffickers and youth gangs of today. The contributors offer fresh insights into contemporary criminal violence and reconsider past interpretations of political violence, liberation theology, and human rights.

Beyond High Courts: The Justice Complex in Latin America is a much-needed volume that will make a significant contribution to the growing fields of comparative law and politics and Latin American legal institutions. The book moves these research agendas beyond the study of high courts by offering theoretically and conceptually rich empirical analyses of a set of critical supranational, national, and subnational justice sector institutions that are generally neglected in the literature. The chapters examine the region''s large federal systems (Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico), courts in Chile and Venezuela, and the main supranational tribunal in the region, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Aimed at students of comparative legal institutions while simultaneously offering lessons for practitioners charged with designing such institutions, the volume advances our understanding of the design of justice institutions, how their form and function change over time, what causes those changes, and what consequences they have. The volume also pays close attention to how justice institutions function as a system, exploring institutional interactions across branches and among levels of government (subnational, national, supranational) and analyzing how they help to shape, and are shaped by, politics and law. Incorporating the institutions examined in the volume into the literature on comparative legal institutions deepens our understanding of justice systems and how their component institutions can both bolster and compromise democracy and the rule of law.Contributors: Matthew C. Ingram, Diana Kapiszewski, Azul A. Aguiar-Aguilar, Ernani Carvalho, Natália Leitão, Catalina Smulovitz, John Seth Alexander, Robert Nyenhuis, Sídia Maria Porto Lima, José Mário Wanderley Gomes Neto, Danilo Pacheco Fernandes, Louis Dantas de Andrade, Mary L. Volcansek, and Martin Shapiro.

During the past half century, Latin America has evolved from a region of political instability and frequent dictatorships into one of elected governments. Although its societies and economies have undergone sweeping changes, high levels of violence have remained a persistent problem. Religious Responses to Violence: Human Rights in Latin America Past and Present offers rich resources to understand how religion has perceived and addressed different forms of violence, from the political and state violence of the 1970s and 1980s to the drug traffickers and youth gangs of today. The contributors offer many fresh insights into contemporary criminal violence and reconsider past interpretations of political violence, liberation theology, and human rights in light of new questions and evidence. In contrast to many other studies of violence, this book explores its moral dimensions-up close in lived experience-and the real consequences of human agency. Alexander Wilde provides a thoughtful substantive introduction, followed by thematic chapters on "rights," "violence," and case studies of ten countries throughout the region. The book breaks new ground examining common responses as well as differences between Catholic and Evangelical pastoral accompaniment. These new studies focus on the specifically religious character of their responses-how they relate their mission and faith to violence in different contexts-to better understand how and why they have taken action.

Examines the question of how crime and crime fighting impact the consolidation of democracy and the rule of law in Latin America. This book evaluates broadly a relative dearth of hard data about the Latin American security situation. It is suitable for those in the fields of Latin American and comparative law, political science, and sociology.

Imagines Cuba's future after the ""poof moment"" - when the current regime will no longer exist. This volume does not try to predict how and when the Castro regime will end, but instead considers the possible consequences of change. Each chapter takes up a basic issue: politics, the military, the legal system, civil society, and US-Cuba relations.

A collection of speeches presented annually at the University of Notre Dame in honor of the assassinated Archbishop Romero of Salvador.

Focuses on the ""animal game,"" a kind of popular gambling entertainment or lottery originated in 1882 within Brazil, in which locals bet on a list of twenty-five animals. Written in English, this work moves smoothly between comprehensive analysis and field observations of specific behaviors and practices.

Focusing primarily on recent South American cases, ""Issues in Democratic Consolidation"" examines some of the difficulties of constructing consolidated democracies and provides a critical examination of the major issues involved.

Ten scholars from the varied fields of philosophy, theology, history, anthropology and literature reflect on the theme of courage. Contributors to this volume agree that courage is not just for the few or the dramatically heroic but is required of everyone of us.

This volume contains Guillermo O'Donnell's qualitative theoretical study of the quality of democracy and Vargas Cullell's description and analysis of the empirical data he gathered on the quality of democracy in Costa Rica.

Why has Colombia's internal war become so entrenched? Why have peace efforts failed to produce durable agreements? Why has Colombia's long-standing democracy experienced such glaring failures? This book addresses these questions and delves into the underlying politics and bedrock human rights issues in Colombia.

This study describes a Latin American legal system which punishes only the poor and a ""democratic"" state which fails to control its own agents' arbitrary practices. The contributors argue that judicial reform cannot be seperated from human rights and that justice must be made available to the poor.

Investigates judicial reform in Argentina, Mexico, and Peru. This book suggests that while ruling parties can be induced to initiate judicial reforms by introducing constitutional revisions, they often prove unwilling to implement these constitutional changes by enacting required legislation.

Exploring the major changes that have shaped Latin America since independence - decentralization of the state - this text explores the causes of decentralization in six significant case studies: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Venezuela. Shorter analyses of Uruguay and Peru are also included.

These essays are a treatment of one of the changes that have shaped Latin America since independence: decentralization of the state. Contributors argue that though the assignment of political, fiscal, and administrative duties to subnational governments has been an important political developments, it is also one of the most overlooked..

Investigates the political sources of improved government responsiveness in contemporary Mexico. This book draws on theoretical frameworks that explain responsiveness (the degree to which government output matches public preferences) as a function of electoral accountability mechanisms, direct participatory pressure, or a combination of the two.

This work brings together contributors from the US, Latin America and organizations such as UNICEF, to consider the physical, educational, social legal and economic status and progress of children throughout Latin America, focusing especially on health and rights issues.

This work brings together contributors from the US, Latin America and organizations such as UNICEF, to consider the physical, educational, social legal and economic status and progress of children throughout Latin America, focusing especially on health and rights issues.

Among the challenges for democracies in Latin America and Southern Europe are weakened political parties, politicized militaries, compromised judiciaries, corrupt police forces and widespread citizen distrust. These essays offer an examination of the political structures and institutions bequeathed by authoritarian regimes.