Suchergebnisse

This essay examines how scholars teach Latin American Politics to undergraduate students in American colleges and universities. Based on an analysis of syllabi from Latin American politics survey courses, this article studies the themes, case studies, books, student participation techniques, multimedia, and online services used by teachers of Latin American Politics in the United States. The study shows some areas of consensus and disagreement among scholars. Scholars concur on what are the most frequently discussed themes and countries. Scholars tend to disagree on the required books and types of required student participation. Those who employ audiovisual materials tend to disagree less on their choice of videos. Last, an important number of scholars use online services in their Latin American Politics classes, although there are still others who do not.

In the 1990s, particularly in the wake of the fall of the Soviet Union, comparativists rediscovered the enduring appeal of separatist movements around the globe. Many of the most significant political events of the past decade have revolved around issues of nationalism, ethnicity, irredenta, and the like. In light of these renewed preoccupations, it is surprising that U.S. scholars have largely ignored a nationalist movement closer to home. The Puerto Rican independence movement is by far the most significant separatist tendency under the U.S. flag, and is one of the few major anticolonialist movements to survive into the twenty-first century. Although supporters of Puerto Rican independence have typically drawn only three to five percent support in local elections and in plebiscites on the island's political status, neither have they disappeared from the political scene. The remarkable durability of the independence movement demands systematic explanation. However, as strange as it may seem, to date there have been no serious scholarly studies of the social bases of the Puerto Rican independence movement.

The book examines the role of cooperation and drug policies in the Americas in the twenty-first century, focusing on the major trends and challenges. It argues that one country cannot solve drug trafficking alone-the producing, consuming, and transit countries must work together and cooperate.

This book analyzes the prison systems in the Americas in the twenty-first century. Leading experts discuss the state of the prison systems in their respective countries, focusing on trends of overcrowding, high recidivism rates, harsh drug laws, human rights, and the relationship between prisons, drug trafficking, and organized crime.