Previous Event

February 26, 2006

"Democracy and Indigenous Movements in Latin America"
by Kenneth P. Jameson, Ph.D., of the University of Utah Economics Department

Kenneth P. Jameson is a professor of economics at the University of Utah, where he has served as President of the Academic Senate, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Chair of the Department of Economics. He was formerly at Notre Dame where he was Chair of the Latin American Studies Program. He is fluent in Spanish and has worked in Latin America since 1964. Recently, he conducted seminars on issues in Higher Education for faculty, Deans and University Presidents at the Catholic University, the Central University and at the National Institute of Higher Studies in Ecuador. He was also an observer of the Venezuelan recall election with the Carter Center. He has consulted for U.S. and Latin American government agencies and non-profits, conducting field research in most of Latin America, concentrating primarily on Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru.

"Electoral democracy in Latin America has not confronted their underlying structural problems, which trace back to colonization. Revitalized indigenous movements in Mexico, Peru and particularly in Ecuador and Bolivia bring a new dimension to the politics of those countries, which could result in profound democratic change and increased civil strife. The presentation will explore these issues."

References and Resources:
Articles:
Article on the newly elected "indigenous" President of Bolivia, Evo Morales
"Participation, Violence, and Development in Four Andean Countries" Latin American Research Review 39#3 (October 2004): pp185-204.

Books:
"Ethnopolitics in Ecuador: Indigenous Rights and the Strengthening of Democracy" by Selverston-Scher, Melina, 2001, Miami: North South Center Press.
"Political Crises, Social Conflict and Economic Development: The Political Economy of the Andean Region" by Andres Solimano, - Northampton, Mass, Edward Elgar.