Politicians often buy votes with impunity. Brazil outlawed vote buying for many years, but prosecutions were rare. However, popular pressure mounted against the practice in the late 1990s. Over one million Brazilians signed a petition against vote buying, leading to the country’s first law by popular initiative passed by the national legislature. The law not only surmounted key obstacles to the popular initiative process but also dramatically increased prosecutions for clientelism during elections. Campaign handouts became the top reason that politicians were ousted in Brazil, with over a thousand removals from office. This study examines the role of civil society and the judiciary in the enactment and implementation of this important legislation.

In 2008 Guatemala passed legislation criminalizing various forms of violence against women and mandating the creation of courts that would specialize in such violence. This article demonstrates that these reforms’ impacts were unevenly felt, with the most marginalized benefiting the least. It explains this gap by drawing on a historical intersectional analysis, and reveals the importance of including place alongside more commonly studied categories of difference. It also illuminates the sources of the gaps between policies and their impacts. It finds that many Guatemalan women remained marginalized from security and justice, despite attempts to protect them, for two reasons. First, the reforms isolated violence against women from other structural sources of inequality, thus undercutting their impacts for multiply marginalized women. Second, the reforms’ impacts were undermined by historically constituted patterns of state-society relations and the uneven nature of the Guatemalan state.

In several Latin American countries, social violence has risen to warlike levels. Nevertheless, little attention has been paid to the extent of social violence and the new (informal) forms of governance generated by the so-called violent nonstate actors (VNSAs). Where a state’s forces fail to provide for the physical protection and social security of its citizens, some areas are governed by a mix of formal (vertical) and informal (horizontal) forms of governance, mixing state and nonstate actors. In these socially bounded spaces, nonstate actors produce and distribute public goods similarly as the state does. In this article, we explore how hybrid governance has appeared in the South American region, considering the operation of two regional VNSAs, the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) in Brazil and the Bandas Criminales (BACRIM) in Colombia. We show that such VNSAs are significant agents for security governance, as they challenge preconceived notions of state authority (legitimacy).

Existing work on state building focuses on the creation of modern bureaucracies and institutions for education and taxation but generally neglects to point to communal property regimes as tools of statecraft. Political science scholars who focus on ethnic communal lands in the Americas emphasize the rise of formal multicultural institutions, including Indigenous land rights, but are skeptical about governments’ willingness to title large extensions of land to Indigenous or other ethnic groups because of opposing economic interests. Focusing on the titling of 12 percent of Honduras’s territory between 2012 and 2016, this article uses semi-structured elite interviews, land titling data, field notes from three months in rural and urban sites in Honduras, and drug-trafficking reports to examine the motivation of officials in the central government. Evidence suggests that the central government views and uses ethnic land titling as a strategy to reclaim territorial dominance in contested locations that lack state presence.

Domestic workers, as essentially black women in highly precarious conditions, lacking social protection, and often not recognized as proper workers, are considered particularly hard, or even impossible, to organize compared to the “standard” male industrial worker. Yet they have been mobilizing for decades in several countries, including Brazil, where they won new labor rights in 2015. Through an ethnographic study of domestic workers’ unions in Brazil, I argue that what has made their mobilization possible is precisely the intersectional dimension of their oppression. While gender, race, and class have produced multiple forms of exclusion, these vectors of oppression have also enabled domestic workers to build alliances with women’s, black, and workers’ movements, thus giving domestic workers more visibility and more resources to organize their members. I have identified three forms of alliance building, each determined by domestic workers’ unions’ particular framing of gender, race, and class issues: rigid autonomy, critical alliance, and encompassing unionism.

How did the social sciences theoretically contribute to producing the movements of Chilean pobladores and Brazilian favelados during the twentieth century? Through a critical review of the main theories that seek to understand the political actions of the urban poor in Santiago de Chile and Rio de Janeiro, this article shows the close relationship between these movements and the production of social sciences, in which a double hermeneutic operates—a mutually influential reflexive process that eventually contributed to the constitution and recognition of the movements as such. This research analyzes how social sciences perform the same social struggles that they attempt to describe, in other words, how certain academic contexts interact positively or negatively with the political and social disputes generated from the movements in question. I review theories of marginality and dependent urbanization, urban social movements, utilitarian views, and new social movements, showing how these interpretations alternated between requiem, rediscovery, and denial of the favelados and pobladores as social movements.

Este estudo objetivou identificar os efeitos e impactos da recriação das Superintendências de Desenvolvimento do Nordeste (Sudene) e da Amazônia (Sudam), sob o Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento, no desenvolvimento socioeconômico dos municípios atendidos. Para tanto, utilizaram-se modelos de Dados em Painel Dinâmico e de Diferenças em Diferenças, com informações dos municípios brasileiros, de 2005 a 2014. O indicador de desenvolvimento socioeconômico empregado foi o Índice Firjan de Desenvolvimento Municipal, tanto sob a perspectiva geral quanto sob suas dimensões (educação, saúde e emprego/renda). De forma geral, os resultados apontaram que as Superintendências impactaram positivamente os desenvolvimentos geral e da educação. Para a saúde, observaram-se impactos e efeitos positivos. Porém, embora as regiões beneficiadas sejam as mais necessitadas de políticas de desenvolvimento regional no Brasil, a reestruturação das superintendências, com os projetos e objetivos propostos, não foi capaz de cumpri-los integralmente, pois não foram identificados impactos positivos para emprego e renda.

En 1835, el esclavo cubano Juan Francisco Manzano escribió su autobiografía, cumpliendo con el encargo del abolicionista Domingo del Monte. El manuscrito original muestra un narrador psicológicamente escindido que lucha consigo mismo y proyecta una tonalidad terrorífica que produce una gran empatía a sus lectores. En oposición al horror, la modalidad terrorífica se define por su tendencia a la ocultación, al tiempo que crea incertidumbre e intriga. Esto es visible en los múltiples episodios de tortura en el texto, en el cual el narrador se centra en los momentos previos al suceso, evitando descripciones gráficas. A través del análisis de la transcripción del manuscrito de William Luis, arguyo que esta tonalidad logra expresar la experiencia de la esclavitud, una condición desconocida para la gran mayoría de los lectores. Gracias a un proceso imaginativo, los lectores pueden tener acceso a la experiencia y sentir empatía por el esclavo en el umbral del horror.

Este artículo analiza las fotografías, ensayos y diario de viaje de la exploradora inglesa Alice Dixon Le Plongeon en su paso por la Península de Yucatán durante la segunda mitad del siglo XIX (1874–1885). A pesar de su trabajo pionero como exploradora y fotógrafa Chichén Itzá y Uxmal, Alice Dixon no ha formado parte hasta ahora del conjunto de viajeros y viajeras extranjeros que integran el canon multicultural y multilingüe de Latinoamérica. Este trabajo rescata la obra de Dixon prestando particular atención a la dimensión material (mobiliario, vestimenta, instrumentos domésticos y fotográficos) sobre la que se construye la experiencia y el conocimiento de la viajera como arqueóloga y fotógrafa en Yucatán. Un análisis de la presencia, circulación y reflexión de y sobre los objetos (“cosas” en la definición de Bill Brown) contribuye al estudio de la compleja relación de los viajeros con su propia identidad en viaje y con el territorio visitado, destaca el rol de la cultura material en la definición de “lo femenino” en el siglo XIX, y propone nuevos modos para aproximarse a la construcción del conocimiento científico y etnográfico en la escritura de las mujeres viajeras.

Este artículo analiza Todos los negros tomamos café (1976) de la narradora cubana Mirta Yáñez como un ejemplo de escritura que celebra la experimentación y que entra en tensión con los moldes estéticos dominantes en la literatura cubana posrevolucionaria. Particularmente, exploro la estratégica posicionalidad de una enunciación polifónica y fragmentada como espacio de contestación a las certezas desde las que se construyeron las narrativas testimoniales. Sugiero que la narrativa de Yáñez se proyecta como una lúcida interrogación acerca de la posición de las escritoras cubanas en un medio que se rehusaba a incorporar voces disidentes, aun cuando la disidencia se manifestara en el plano de la experimentación y la exploración estética. Deslizándose desde los márgenes creados por las normas y políticas de producción cultural, Yáñez configura una narrativa en la que la palabra asume plenamente su calidad de artefacto estético.

Este artículo examina cómo en el Ejército Colombiano, específicamente en la Escuela de Soldados Profesionales (ESPRO), fundada con el objetivo de profesionalizar a los soldados colombianos, coexisten diferentes narrativas en las que adquiere vida el proceso educativo militar. Este artículo muestra cómo en ellas se construye el guerrero ideal, cómo esta construcción tiene un vínculo con el pasado independentista y cómo, se da vida a las funciones de la ESPRO y a los medios usados para educar a los soldados. Nos ocuparemos también de cómo los soldados, exalumnos de la Escuela, definen la profesionalización. El artículo se basa en una investigación etnográfica conducida en el 2016 en la ESPRO, financiada por la Facultad de Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad de los Andes, Colombia.

El artículo analiza cuál es el tipo de conocimiento o verdad que se construye en el marco de un proceso penal por violaciones a los derechos humanos cometidas en un contexto dictatorial, y cómo este aporta al existente sobre los crímenes, sus víctimas y los responsables. La intención es analizar el proceso de larga duración en el que se juzgan los crímenes cometidos durante la última dictadura en Argentina (1976–1983). Particularmente, la causa penal por los delitos de la Escuela de Mecánica de la Armada (ESMA), donde funcionó uno de los más grandes centros clandestinos de detención del periodo. Se analizarán el segundo y tercer juicio de la causa (2009–2017) y la producción de conocimiento en relación a tres temas: 1) la violencia de género; 2) la división de los sobrevivientes y su utilización como mano de obra esclava; 3) los vuelos de la muerte. Se partirá del supuesto de que, si bien los crímenes cometidos en la ESMA fueron ampliamente descritos en los mecanismos transicionales del país y en materiales posteriores, los avances en las investigaciones y las condiciones de la producción de la evidencia en un proceso penal contribuyeron a que existan aportes específicos y novedosos.

Since General Augusto Pinochet’s detention in 1998, an unprecedented number of human rights trials has taken place across Latin America. The main source of evidence employed in these proceedings are victims’ testimonies: in fact, records documenting human rights violations are generally unavailable, having either been destroyed or hidden. When archives do exist, they do not usually identify individual perpetrators or victims, nor do they directly establish criminal responsibility. This article focuses on two criminal trials that unfolded in Argentina and Italy and closely probed the atrocities of Operation Condor. It contends that archival documents only contain remnants of truth and fragments of evidence. These slivers have to be interpreted, contextualized, and sometimes even questioned in order to render them relevant and useful to criminal investigations of past atrocities. Specifically, the article deconstructs the role that different trial actors—including public and private prosecutors, archivists, experts, witnesses, lawyers, and judges—played in the courtroom, engaging in proactive efforts to piece together the evidence that archival records possess and activating their content.

En Chile, desde los inicios de la república, las amnistías después de guerras civiles y conflictos violentos fueron el fundamento de la reconciliación política. La transición política iniciada en 1990 se propuso establecer la verdad sobre las violaciones de los derechos humanos cometidas durante la dictadura, reconocer y reparar a las víctimas y hacer justicia en la medida de lo posible, a pesar de la vigencia de la amnistía de 1978. En este artículo se analiza la evolución de diversas instancias del proceso de justicia transicional y la lucha contra la impunidad que es la experiencia de las víctimas de la tortura y sus familias. El caso de Haydee Oberreuter nos permite examinar las posibilidades, resultados y limitaciones de los procesos judiciales en relación con las demandas de justicia y reparación de las víctimas de tortura.

Despite persisting impunity, over the past several years Guatemala has made important strides in prosecuting war crimes committed during the internal armed conflict (1960–1996). This article provides an ethnographic account of the 2018 Molina Theissen trial, which resulted in the conviction of four senior military officials for crimes against humanity, aggravated sexual violence, and forced disappearance. An ethnographic study of this critical human rights trial can help us understand how a country with a relatively weak judicial system and well-organized spoilers has managed to hold the intellectual authors of wartime atrocities responsible for their acts. It also contributes to a richer understanding of the construction, meaning, and impact of human rights prosecutions for victims and the broader society, and what role they play in broader public debates over the historical memory of conflictual pasts.

Este ensayo reseña las siguientes películas:

Ciro y yo. Dir. Miguel Salazar. Prod. La Esperanza. Colombia, 2018, 117 min. Distribuido por Pragda (pragda.com).

Fragmentos. Dir. Mayte Carrasco. Prod. Photoholic y Big Story Films. Colombia, Canadá, Reino Unido, 2019, 23 min. Disponible a través del Canal de YouTube del Museo Nacional de Colombia, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7rAb2O0JV8.

Limbo. Dir. Alex Fattal. Prod. Break the Frame Films y Casatarántula. Colombia-EEUU, 2020. Distribuido por Cinema Guild (cinemaguild.com).

El silencio de los fusiles. Dir. Natalia Orozco. Prod. NCN Televisión, Pulso Mundo y Arte Francia. Colombia, Francia, 2017, 120 min. DVD. Disponible en www.silenciofusiles.com.

El testigo: Caín y Abel. Dir. Kate Horne. Prod. Pacha Films, Horne Productions y Ronachan Films. Colombia, Reino Unido, 2018, 72 min. Disponible en Netflix.

This essay reviews the following works:

From Idols to Antiquity: Forging the National Museum of Mexico. By Miruna Achim. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2017. Pp. ix+ 327. $30.00 paperback. ISBN: 9781496203373.

Framing a Lost City: Science, Photography, and the Making of Machu Picchu. By Amy Cox Hall. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2017. Pp. xiv + 267. $29.95 paperback. ISBN: 9781477313688.

Knowing the Day, Knowing the World: Engaging Amerindian Thought in Public Archaeology. By Lesley Green and David R. Green. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2013. Pp.vi + 308. $55.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780816530373.

Creating Pátzcuaro, Creating Mexico: Art, Tourism, and Nation Building under Lázaro Cárdenas. By Jennifer Jolly. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2018. Pp. xi + 340. $29.95 paperback. ISBN: 9781477314203.

Nature and Antiquities: The Making of Archaeology in the Americas. Edited by Philip L. Kohl, Irina Podgorny, and Stefanie Gänger. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2014. Pp. ix + 246. $60.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780816531127.

Our Indigenous Ancestors: A Cultural History of Museums, Science, and Identity in Argentina, 1877–1943. By Carolyne R. Larson. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2015. Pp. viii + 221. $79.95 hardcover. ISBN: 9780271066967.

Maya Cultural Heritage: How Archaeologists and Indigenous Communities Engage the Past. By Patricia A. McAnany. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, 2016. Pp. ix + 245. $85.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9781442241275.

Making Machu Picchu: The Politics of Tourism in Twentieth-Century Peru. By Mark Rice. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2018. Pp. xvi + 233. $29.95 paperback. ISBN: 9781469643533.

This essay reviews the following works:

Ensaios de grande estratégia brasileira. By João Paulo S. Alsina Jr. Rio de Janeiro: Editora FGV, 2018. Pp. 291. Reais 43.00 paperback. ISBN: 9788522520619.

Politics in Uniform: Military Officers and Dictatorship in Brazil, 1960–1980. By Maud Chirio. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2018. Pp. xii + 280. $28.95 paperback. ISBN: 9780822965374.

Soldiers of the Nation: Military Service and Modern Puerto Rico, 1868–1952. By Harry Franqui-Rivera. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2018. Pp. xiii + 342. $60.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780803278677.

Fuerzas armadas, pretorianismo y calidad de la democracia: Ecuador y Uruguay. By Patricio Haro Ayerve. Quito: FLACSO, 2017. Pp. xix + 307. $18.00. ISBN: 9789978674789.

Brazil, 1964–1985: The Military Regimes of Latin America in the Cold War. By Herbert S. Klein and Francisco Vidal Luna. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2017. Pp. xiii+ 216. $40.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780300223316.

Debating Civil-Military Relations in Latin America. Edited by David R. Mares and Rafael Martínez. Eastbourne, UK: Sussex Academic Press, 2014. Pp. xii + 224. $69.95 hardcover. ISBN: 9781845195915.

Military Missions in Democratic Latin America. By David Pion-Berlin. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016. Pp. xiii + 218. $119.99 hardcover. ISBN: 9781137592699.

Soldiers, Politicians, and Civilians: Reforming Civil-Military Relations in Democratic Latin America. By David Pion-Berlin and Rafael Martínez. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2017. Pp. i + 414. $32.99 paperback. ISBN: 9781316604434.

La red de los espejos: Una historia del diario Excélsior, 1916–1976. By Arno Burkholder, Mexico City: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2016. Pp. 187. 140.00 pesos paperback. ISBN: 9786071637208.

Callar o morir en Veracruz: Violencia y medios de comunicación en el sexenio de Javier Duarte (2010–2016). By Celia del Palacio Montiel. Mexico City: Juan Pablos, 2018. Pp. 424. 300.00 pesos paperback. ISBN: 9786077114598.

Historia crítica del periodismo mexicano. By Humberto Musacchio. Mexico City: Luna Media Comunicación, 2016. Pp. 259. 200 pesos paperback. ISBN: 9786079736705.

Unwanted Witnesses: Journalists and Conflict in Contemporary Latin America. By Gabriela Polit Dueñas. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2019. Pp. xv + 168. $40.00 hardcover. ISBN: 9780822945833.

“Se solicitan reporteros”: Historia oral del periodismo mexicano en la segunda mitad del siglo XX. By Ana María Serna. Mexico City: Editorial Mora, 2015. Pp. 383. 229.00 pesos paperback. ISBN: 9786079475161.

The Mexican Press and Civil Society, 1940–1976: Stories from the Newsroom, Stories from the Street. By Benjamin T. Smith. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2018. Pp. xiv + 366. $37.95 paperback. ISBN: 9781469638089.

Narcoperiodismo: La prensa en medio del crimen y la denuncia. By Javier Valdez Cárdenas. Mexico City: Aguilar, 2016. Pp. 109.00 pesos paperback. ISBN: 9786073147118.