Democracy in Chile: The Legacy of September 11, 1973 - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1845192028 ISBN 13: 9781845192020

Publisher: Liverpool University Press, 2013

Synopsis

In the 1990s, Latin America emerged from the horror of massive and systematic human rights violations as the region returned to civilian elected regimes. Many hoped that such transitions would bring about significant political, economic and cultural change-the rebuilding of a more democratic order based on a culture of human rights that would reinvigorate democratic practices in the region. Despite the change in political regimes, such aspirations have come up against the "recalcitrant realities" of enduring military enclaves demanding impunity for past crimes, the persistence of neoliberal economics, ineffective and, in some cases, corrupt government coalitions, as well as the seemingly insatiable demands of private domestic and international capital for flexible labor and unregulated capital flows. This volume aims to re-examine Chile's 9/11-a historically and symbolically charged event-and to explore the lasting legacy of the transformations brought about by the oppressive regimes of the '70s and '80s as they are being experienced today in the cultural, social and intellectual life of the region. Winner of the MACLAS (Middle Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies) Arthur P. Whitaker Prize for best book.

About this title

About the Author

Silvia Nagy-Zekmi is a professor of Latin American literature and cultural studies at Villanova University. She is the author of Paralelismos transatlanticos: Postcolonialidad y narrativa femenina en America Latina y Africa del Norte. Fernando Leiva is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University at Albany. With James Petras, he co-authored Democracy and Poverty in Chile: The Limits to Electoral Politics (1994).

Review

“This conference volume is unusual – and valuable – for its primary focus on Chile after the end of the dictatorship and the restoration of democracy in 1990. The authors in this anthology generally share the Left’s critical gaze and offer a critique of Chile’s much-lauded transition to democracy and neo-liberal economic miracle, lending the book an ideological cohesion.”  —The Americas Review

“Almost all contributions are concise, well documented and well written, and together take stock of both the state of affairs of Chile’s efforts to come to grips with its dictatorial history, and of the many pending economic, political and judicial injustices that yet need to be taken on ... a timely, well-documented collection that reminds us of the fact that to state that ‘democracy has returned in Chile’ is, to say the least, premature.”  —European Review of Latin American and Caribbean Studies

“The interdisciplinary nature of the book enhances its ability to cover a range of topics and incorporate a variety of approaches, thus deepening the scope of questions asked (and answered) and subjects covered. The editors have done a very good job of bringing together an assorted set of chapters that they successfully weave together with helpful introductions... Although each chapter stands on its own, combined they offer a powerful answer to the question: What impact has the military coup that overthrew the Popular Unity government of Salvador Allende had on Chilean society, culture, and politics?”  —A Journal on Social History and Literature in Latin America

“This volume gives an overall view of Chile today and it offers the reader an instructive glimpse into what the future might hold for this country.” Marjorie Agosín, Wellesley College “In an important investigation of Chile after September 11, 1973, the authors and editors have effectively linked particular events and trends in the recent Chilean past with patterns of globalization in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. This excellent collection will be of most use to specialists but also may be rewarding for graduate students interested in recent Chilean history and society.”  —Hispanic American Historical Review

Edition details

• Publisher: Liverpool University Press
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1845192028
• ISBN 13: 9781845192020
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 280
• Editor: Nagy-Zekmi Silvia, Leiva Fernando