1st Edition

The Continuing Struggle For Democracy In Latin America

By Howard J. Wiarda Copyright 1982

    This integrated collection of original essays evaluates and assesses whether democracy is viable in Latin America and, if so, how and in what form. The authors examine the significance, for both Latin America and the United States, of the dominance of authoritarian political systems in most Latin American countries; explore the implications of asse

    Preface -- Introduction: A Perspective and Framework -- Is Latin America Democratic and Does It Want To Be? The Crisis and Quest of Democracy in the Hemisphere -- Long-Range Perspectives on the Quest for Democracy in Latin America -- Critical Elections and Critical Coups: The Processes of Sociopolitical Realignment in Latin American Development -- Latin American Populism: Some Notes on Periodization -- Group Politics and Democratic Pluralism in Latin America: Prospects and Weaknesses -- Peasant and Worker Sindicatos and Democracy in Latin America -- Women, Population Policy, and Democracy in Latin America -- Political Parties, Opposition Politics, and Democracy in Latin America -- Democracy and Elites in Latin America -- Has Democracy Failed? -- Democratic Political Development and the Alliance for Progress -- Development Strategies and the Decline of the Democratic Left in Latin America -- Leadership and the Failure of Democracy -- Is Democracy Still Viable? -- Ideological Dependency and the Origins of Socialism in the Caribbean -- The Struggle for Democracy and Human Rights in Latin America: Toward a New Conceptualization -- Democracy and the Bureaucratic State in Latin America -- Conclusion: The Continuing Struggle for Democracy in Latin America -- Latin American Democracy: The Historic Model and the New Openings

    Biography

    Howard J. Wiarda is professor of political science, adjunct professor of labor relations, and chairman of the Program in Latin American Studies at the University of Massachusetts.