THE STATE OF THE MILITARY
The book Faces Of Latina America by Duncan Green and Sue Branford explored the linear nature of cultural, social, and political norms. The book’s focus on Latino America provides an amicable scope for the study of the relationship between culture and politics due to the extensive history of the region. The peasantry has been a group of interest throughout the book, and the numerous transformations they have taken over time depict the nature of politics. Since the Portuguese-controlled majority of the region, the recent government, which projects a more liberal stature throughout the history of Latin America.
Over the period of 400 – 500 years in Latin America, the place has experienced colonization from many countries, and local leaders have also had the opportunity to govern their people. Throughout the season, the elite operated bureaucracies and always found ways to be involved in administrative roles and control over resources. The fear of peasant uprising was, however, profound throughout the regime, and the administration deliberately created roles that undermined the peasantry’s strength. However, this group played vital roles in the ousting of the dictators during the 20th century and in the 17th century when Columbia broke to Venezuela, Columbia, and Ecuador.
- James Petra drafted ‘The New Revolutionary Peasantry’ in 1998 when peasant uprising had attracted humongous numbers which were revered by the administration. James utilizes the opportunity to speak to a delegation of peasant leaders at a retreat in San Jose, Brazil. The article delves deep into the premise and its main motive is to empower the peasant revolutionaries. By expounding the nature of the dynamics that are playing at the political, economic and social levels, the author achieved a lot. The author also reflects on the role of imperialism exerted by Bill Clinton’s administration, where military forces oppress coca farmers. Although the article acknowledges that the peasant revolution contributed to the minimal propaganda surrounding the cocaine trade, activities of the USA administration still impact a variety of key government departments in Latin America.
The revolutionary peasant represents a literate citizen, which indicates that most members have a comprehensive knowledge of relevant national and global issues. Literacy levels are directly related to the continual replenishment of the social, cultural, and political systems. Such a move to educate members has also been flanked by frequent meetings, which are a way of strengthening the bond between members. The writer raises a couple of challenges faced by the movements, which is the repression of members’ practical efforts to lobby for the enforcement of favorable policies, especially surrounding agriculture.
- Consider what you learned in Modules 1 and 2 and what you have learned about social movements in this module, and write an essay discussing how the economic policies introduced since the 1970s and earlier affected indigenous peoples. Why has the fate of the indigenous people of Latin America been so similar to those of Canada, the US, and Australia?
Social movements in Latino America have recurrently appeared through the history of the administration of the member countries. Their role has been to make the government accountable for the region’s resources partially. Patterns of administration are mostly similar among the South American countries, and the region as a block shares common cultures and political formations. Therefore most of the regions within the continent have a unique history. Still, the whole regions are hard to segment due to the many commonalities than differences associated with the member countries. The social movements take different outfits, and some of them even evolve into phenomenal political parties.
The mode of operation of these social movements is the utilization of the numbers of the peasantry to force the administration into action. This approach has also been used by outsiders of the monarchs and the elites in an attempt to penetrate the highly guarded circles. Whenever a social movement threatened the stability of the government, some of the ideas being propagated by the group could be implemented. Successful bargains with the political class led to more funds being directed to the lowest level of the society, amongst other social benefits. With the rapid evolution and growth of countries, especially during the industrial revolution, the creation and growth of social movements are mainly attributed to a group of commoners who share common goals. While a significant number of the leaders of these groups are propelled by activism, the majority of them usually join these groups to lobby for a cause that would elevate their lives.
The Sandinista movement in Nicaragua, for instance, managed to form a compact movement that toppled the dictatorial government that was ruling until 1979. In the Sandinista government’s case, the administrator restricted their power to a few key activists, and they exerted influence over the other members. Although more power was given to the people, the group members gradually fell off as they were unable to put the needs of the party before themselves. In 1990 in Brazil, the Workers Party with Lula as their flagbearer managed to oust the incumbent dictatorial government. The ripple effect of the victory to Brazil, which is one of the key players of the region, heralded for the establishment of authorities that promised to involve the people ranked lower in the social hierarchy in the society in countries like Ecuador, Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay. By the 1990s, university enrollments had tripled compared to when the dictatorial and military governments were in authority. The general curiosity of the populace had risen, and most of the people could now read and write.
The indigenous residents of Latin America have evolved differently compared to their USA and Canada counterparts since the two countries are experienced in a democratic administration. The USA’s ability to foster such a politically and economically empowered state machinery is attributable to the more than four centuries of practicing democracy. Unlike in Latin America, where formal education took root during the 20th century, the USA was one of the leading regions of educational excellence alongside some other European countries and territories with distinct education models and advanced apprenticeships. The past two decades of administration under neoliberal and democratic governments have rapidly accelerated the enhancement of the standards of living of the South American people. Although formal employment is the most vibrant employer, individuals who are forced to rely on daily wages in urban centers have had better chances of landing jobs than the previous regimes where peasants were not empowered. The imperial activities of profoundly grounded economies like the USA have been accused of tampering with the backbone of the economy of the Latino nations. The USA imposes tariffs and allocates funds to the exportation of agriculture produced from wealthy landowners, and this inadvertently undermines the efforts of the rural farmers. They, at times, choose not to till the land and farm due to the difficulty in making an economic routine from such a dwindled sector. The current challenges that peasant farmers could be experiencing can be attributed to the lax laws of the past upon which the current system lies. The corruption and the manipulation of the various production factors undermined the nature of agriculture that family farms used to provide in the 1700s.