Democracy and the Public Space in Latin America

Democracy and the Public Space in Latin America
Author :
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Total Pages : 209
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781400825011
ISBN-13 : 1400825016
Rating : 4/5 (11 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Democracy and the Public Space in Latin America by : Leonardo Avritzer

Download or read book Democracy and the Public Space in Latin America written by Leonardo Avritzer and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2009-01-10 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a bold new study of the recent emergence of democracy in Latin America. Leonardo Avritzer shows that traditional theories of democratization fall short in explaining this phenomenon. Scholars have long held that the postwar stability of Western Europe reveals that restricted democracy, or "democratic elitism," is the only realistic way to guard against forces such as the mass mobilizations that toppled European democracies after World War I. Avritzer challenges this view. Drawing on the ideas of Jürgen Habermas, he argues that democracy can be far more inclusive and can rely on a sphere of autonomous association and argument by citizens. He makes this argument by showing that democratic collective action has opened up a new "public space" for popular participation in Latin American politics. Unlike many theorists, Avritzer builds his case empirically. He looks at human rights movements in Argentina and Brazil, neighborhood associations in Brazil and Mexico, and election-monitoring initiatives in Mexico. Contending that such participation has not gone far enough, he proposes a way to involve citizens even more directly in policy decisions. For example, he points to experiments in "participatory budgeting" in two Brazilian cities. Ultimately, the concept of such a space beyond the reach of state administration fosters a broader view of democratic possibility, of the cultural transformation that spurred it, and of the tensions that persist, in a region where democracy is both new and different from the Old World models.

Ordinary Places/Extraordinary Events

Ordinary Places/Extraordinary Events
Author :
Publisher : Routledge
Total Pages : 265
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781134326242
ISBN-13 : 1134326246
Rating : 4/5 (42 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Ordinary Places/Extraordinary Events by : Clara Irazábal

Download or read book Ordinary Places/Extraordinary Events written by Clara Irazábal and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2008-01-17 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Clara Irazábal and her contributors explore the urban history of some of Latin America’s great cities through studies of their public spaces and what has taken place there. The avenues and plazas of Mexico City, Havana, Santo Domingo, Caracas, Bogotaì, SaÞo Paulo, Lima, Santiago, and Buenos Aires have been the backdrop for extraordinary, history-making events. While some argue that public spaces are a prerequisite for the expression, representation and reinforcement of democracy, they can equally be used in the pursuit of totalitarianism. Indeed, public spaces, in both the past and present, have been the site for the contestation by ordinary people of various stances on democracy and citizenship. By exploring the use and meaning of public spaces in Latin American cities, this book sheds light on contemporary definitions of citizenship and democracy in the Americas.

Barrio Democracy in Latin America

Barrio Democracy in Latin America
Author :
Publisher : Penn State Press
Total Pages : 262
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780271037332
ISBN-13 : 0271037334
Rating : 4/5 (32 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Barrio Democracy in Latin America by : Eduardo Canel

Download or read book Barrio Democracy in Latin America written by Eduardo Canel and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The transition to democracy underway in Latin America since the 1980s has recently witnessed a resurgence of interest in experimenting with new forms of local governance emphasizing more participation by ordinary citizens. The hope is both to foster the spread of democracy and to improve equity in the distribution of resources. While participatory budgeting has been a favorite topic of many scholars studying this new phenomenon, there are many other types of ongoing experiments. In Barrio Democracy in Latin America, Eduardo Canel focuses our attention on the innovative participatory programs launched by the leftist government in Montevideo, Uruguay, in the early 1990s. Based on his extensive ethnographic fieldwork, Canel examines how local activists in three low-income neighborhoods in that city dealt with the opportunities and challenges of implementing democratic practices and building better relationships with sympathetic city officials.

Street Art and Democracy in Latin America

Street Art and Democracy in Latin America
Author :
Publisher : Springer Nature
Total Pages : 273
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9783030269135
ISBN-13 : 3030269132
Rating : 4/5 (35 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Street Art and Democracy in Latin America by : Olivier Dabène

Download or read book Street Art and Democracy in Latin America written by Olivier Dabène and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-09-24 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores street art’s contributions to democracy in Latin America through a comparative study of five cities: Bogota (Colombia), São Paulo (Brazil), Valparaiso (Chile), Oaxaca (Mexico) and Havana (Cuba). The author argues that when artists invade public space for the sake of disseminating rage, claims or statements, they behave as urban citizens who try to raise public awareness, nurture public debates and hold authorities accountable. Street art also reveals how public space is governed. When local authorities try to contain, regulate or repress public space invasions, they can achieve their goals democratically if they dialogue with the artists and try to reach a consensus inspired by a conception of the city as a commons. Under specific conditions, the book argues, street level democracy and collaborative governance can overlap, prompting a democratization of democracy.

Challenges to Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean

Challenges to Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean
Author :
Publisher : LAPOP
Total Pages : 330
Release :
ISBN-10 : 0979217873
ISBN-13 : 9780979217876
Rating : 4/5 (73 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Challenges to Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean by : Mitchell A. Seligson

Download or read book Challenges to Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean written by Mitchell A. Seligson and published by LAPOP. This book was released on 2008 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Democracy and Public Space

Democracy and Public Space
Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Total Pages : 261
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780199214563
ISBN-13 : 0199214565
Rating : 4/5 (63 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Democracy and Public Space by : John Parkinson

Download or read book Democracy and Public Space written by John Parkinson and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2012 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In an online, interconnected world, democracy is increasingly made up of wikis and blogs, pokes and tweets. Citizens have become accidental journalists thanks to their handheld devices, politicians are increasingly working online, and the traditional sites of democracy - assemblies, public galleries, and plazas - are becoming less and less relevant with every new technology. And yet, this book argues, such views are leading us to confuse the medium with the message, focusing on electronic transmission when often what cyber citizens transmit is pictures and narratives of real democratic action in physical space. Democratic citizens are embodied, take up space, battle over access to physical resources, and perform democracy on physical stages at least as much as they engage with ideas in virtual space. Combining conceptual analysis with interviews and observation in capital cities on every continent, John Parkinson argues that democracy requires physical public space; that some kinds of space are better for performing some democratic roles than others; and that some of the most valuable kinds of space are under attack in developed democracies. He argues that accidental publics like shoppers and lunchtime crowds are increasingly valued over purposive, active publics, over citizens with a point to make or an argument to listen to. This can be seen not just in the way that traditional protest is regulated, but in the ways that ordinary city streets and parks are managed, even in the design of such quintessentially democratic spaces as legislative assemblies. The book offers an alternative vision for democratic public space, and evaluates 11 cities - from London to Tokyo - against that ideal.

Party Systems in Latin America

Party Systems in Latin America
Author :
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Total Pages : 525
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781107175525
ISBN-13 : 1107175526
Rating : 4/5 (25 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Party Systems in Latin America by : Scott Mainwaring

Download or read book Party Systems in Latin America written by Scott Mainwaring and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2018-02-08 with total page 525 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book generates a wealth of new empirical information about Latin American party systems and contributes richly to major theoretical debates about party systems and democracy.