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Roberto Regalado in his new book, LATIN AMERICA AT THE CROSSROADS, analyzes the structures of domination that characterize Latin America and the Caribbean, the nature of the contemporary crisis, the character of popular movements including resistance movements, and the debate over political and economic alternatives. Latin America and the Caribbean have been undergoing a profound transformation since the early 1980s. The neoliberal turn in global capitalism gathered momentum with the onset of the debt crisis of the 1980s. By the early 1990s, in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union, there was a growing emphasis on democratization and the enhancement of constitutional democracy across the region, and especially in the countries that had been dominated by military dictatorships. By the end of the twentieth century and into the early years of the 21st century however it became clear that the neoliberal experiment pointed not to the enhancement or deepening of democracy but rather in the direction of the reconstitution and restoration of power in favor of especially dominant private economic interests and the deepening of social and economic inequality at the expense of the broad mass of working people. Professor William Robinson labels the reality “polyarchy.” Professor David Harvey speaks of “accumulation by dispossession.” This reality has given rise to sustained cynicism about neoliberalism and skepticism about the content of democratization.

Among the most revealing characteristics of the contemporary scene across Latin America and the Caribbean are the following: a widespread movement toward populist regimes that are under popular pressure from social movements to adopt progressive change—the so-called “pink revolution” in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Bolivia, and Venezuela; the protracted crisis and resistance struggles in Haiti in the wake of the overthrow of the constitutionally elected government of Jean Bertrand Aristide; a questioning of the prospect for electoral democracy and representative democracy in the Caribbean to provide economic growth and stability in the direction of human security; rising hostility toward and frustration with the United States; a prolonged period of neglect on the part of the United States except for matters having to do with free trade, security, and terrorism; an emerging popular consensus about the need to address problems of deepening inequality, persistent poverty, and a pervasive environmental crisis; and a broad-based demand for a commitment to sustainable development and social justice. Looming large across the landscape are contextually interrelated issues of investment, trade, debt, tourism, migration, remittances, drug trafficking, poverty and inequality, the concerns of indigenous people, gender issues and violence against women and girls, and sex work and the spread of HIV/AIDS.

While this historic transition is driven by economic and policy dynamics that are a part of larger globalization forces, the associated process has unleashed powerful social and cultural changes that often seem less evident but are nonetheless a vital part of the fabric of the changing reality. The International Focus Year Lecture Series on Latin America and the Caribbean will address a number of related issues. To this end we are bringing to Bucknell four experts who will contribute their perspectives on the unfolding process in contemporary Latin America and the Caribbean. This is our commitment to a critical interdisciplinary approach to understanding today’s reality.

Anthony T. Bryan will present a talk titled "Visions and Reality in Caribbean/Latin American Relations". Patrice Franko will examine the role that multinational corporations are playing today in Brazil and the challenges they face in terms of their corporate social responsibility. Debra Castillo will examine the role of the writer and literature in helping us to understand the contemporary reality by incorporating critical theory and a gender perspective into her contribution. Douglas Massey will conclude the series with an examination of the issue of immigration in the context of Mexico and the United States.