WINTER 2001

This information effective for Winter 2001.
Check with instructor the first day of class for any changes..

Latin American and Latino Studies

[LALS-001] [LALS-100A] [LALS-194N]

1. Introduction to Latin American and Latino Studies

Winter 2001
T / Th 2 - 3:45

Instructor: Susanne Jonas
Merrill 110, x9-3232, 9-2855-message
E-mail: sjonas@cats.ucsc.edu
Office Hours: Wed. 1 - 4, Th. 11 - 12 or by appointment
TAs: Ernesto Bustillos and Rodrigo Gutiérrez

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the study of Latin America and Latinos in the US, from an interdisciplinary perspective. Although we introduce Latin America historically, our main emphases will be contemporary. We will also focus on cross-border realities and issues facing Latino populations in the U.S. We will place a very strong emphasis on learning directly from Latin Americans and Latinos in order to give you a greater understanding of their intellectual, political, and cultural traditions; therefore, many of our readings are by Latin American and Latino writers and actor/participants. You will have the opportunity to hear lectures by some of UC Santa Cruz's leading Latin Americanists and Latino scholars. This course is designed to prepare you to pursue your interests in Latino and Latin American issues generally, and in LALS at UCSC.

Course Readings: Required readings are: 1) Course Reader (available in class); 2) Peter Winn, Americas (at Bay Tree); and 3) maps (at Bay Tree).

In addition, a number of books on Latin America and Latinos will be on reserve for use in preparing written assignments:

  1. Books on Latin America
    Mark Rosenberg, et al. (eds.), Americas
    James Cockcroft, Neighbors in Turmoil: Latin America
    James Cockcroft, Latin America: History, Politics and U.S. Policy
    Thomas Skidmore and Peter Smith, Modern Latin America
    Jan Black, Latin America: Its Problems and Its Promise
  2. Books on Latinos
    Earl Shorris, Latinos
    Richard Delgado/Jean Stefanic, The Latino/a Condition
    Lillian Castillo-Speed, Women's Voices from the Borderlands
    Elizabeth Martinez, De Colores Means All of Us
    Abby Bogomolny, New to North America
    Antonia Darder and Rodolfo Torres, The Latino Studies Reader
    Mary Romero, et al., Challenging Fronteras: Structuring Latina and Latino Lives in the U.S.

Course Requirements and Evaluations

  1. a midterm examination (part in-class, part take-home);
  2. a final examination (part in-class, part take-home);
  3. smaller assignments (maps, case study (pre-midterm) of a country you will "adopt," news summary, identity statement, Latino assignment);
  4. regular class attendance and keeping up with course readings;
  5. attendance at discussion sections (which are required, and at which you should be prepared to discuss the readings and to raise your other questions). There will also be opportunities to raise questions and discuss issues in class.

Note:
  1. Class (as well as section) attendance is mandatory; attendance will be taken, and all absences should be excused.
  2. If for some reason you should need to take an "Incomplete" in this class, you must negotiate it ahead of time with the Instructor/TA - including the deadline for turning in the work and the forms.

Topics and Sessions

Course Introduction and Overview: Latinos and Latin Americans Across Borders (Mar. 28)

I. Conquests and Underdevelopment in the Americas

The Two Conquests (Mar. 30)

Readings:

Chap. 1 in Winn
Bray, de las Casas, Shorris in Reader, Sec. I

Assignments:
  1. Maps (due in section, week of Apr. 3)
  2. Start browsing through Cockcroft, Skidmore & Smith, or Black (on reserve), choose a country to "adopt"

The Roots of Inequality: Colonial and Neo-Colonial Latin America and the U.S. Southwest (Apr. 4)

Readings:

Stein & Stein, Barrera in Reader
Chap. 2 and 3 in Winn

Internal Market vs. World Market (Apr. 6)

Readings:

Chap. 3 and 4 in Winn
Kennedy in Reader

Assignments:
  1. Identity Statement (free-write), due in section week of Apr. 10
  2. (pre-Midterm): Relate these concepts to your "adopted" country in an outline, due in section the week of Apr. 17 (guidelines to be given).

Sustainable Development vs. Neoliberalism (Apr. 11)

Film:

The Burning Season

Readings:

Mendes, Berger, Martínez, New York Times 1990 and 1994 in Reader; also Lampart (Optional)
Chap. 5 in Winn

Theories of (Under)Development (Apr. 13)

Readings:

Isbister, Dos Santos in Reader

Globalization and the Battle of Seattle (Guest presentation by UCSC students) (Apr. 18)

Readings:

Finish Sec. I in Reader (readings on Globalization and WTO)

II. Social Structures and Social Movements in the Americas: Class, Race, Gender

Social Class Structure in Latin America and Latino America (Apr. 20)

Readings:

Sec. II(A) in Reader (Torres-Rivas optional)
Chap. 6 in Winn

Indigenous Movements (Apr. 23)

Readings:

Sec. II(B) in Reader (Rojas Mix optional)
Chap. 7 in Winn (and Chap. 8, optional)

Assignment: Midterm will be handed out on April 25 (to be completed partly in class)

Film Mi Familia (Apr. 27)

Assignment: Midterm due May 2 at beginning of class

Chicano Social Movements (Guest Lecture) (May 2)

Readings:

Acuña, Martínez, Muñoz in Reader, Sec. II(C)
Chap. 14 in Winn

Latin American Immigrants in the U.S. (May 4 and May 11)

Readings:

Cockcroft through Malone in Reader, Sec. II(C)

Latinos in Los Angeles (Guest Lecture: Manuel Pastor) (May 9)

Readings:

Bacon, Pastor in Reader, Sec. II(C)

Assignments:

Latinos Assignment due week of May 15 (guidelines to be handed out)

Chicanas/Latinas in the U.S. and on the Borders (Guest Lecture) (May 16)

Readings:

"Women's Voices," Anzaldúa and Espinoza in Reader, Sec. II(D)
Chap. 11 in Winn (optional)

Women's Movements in Latin America (May 18)

Readings:

Domitila, Navarro in Reader, Sec. II(D) (Safa optional)
Chap. 9 in Winn

III. Politics: Revolution and Intervention, Cross-Border Issues

State and Revolution, Mexican Revolution, NAFTA and Chiapas (Guest Lecture: Jonathan Fox (May 23)

Readings:

Reader Sec. III(A) (Huntington & Jonas/Stein optional)
Chap. 12 (pp. 487 ff.) and Chap. 13 (Mexico sections) in Winn

Cuban Revolution and U.S. Response, Then and Now (May 25)

Readings:

Reader, Sec. III(B)
Chap. 13 (pp. 504 ff.) in Winn

Assignments:

News Summary for section (due week of May 29)

Central America: Revolutions, Hurricanes, and U.S. Policies (May 30)

Readings:

Reader, Sec. III(C) (Berryman optional)
Finish Chap. 13 (pp. 515-536) in Winn

Cross-Border Future of the Americas (June 1)

Readings:

Reader, Sec. III(D)
Epilogue in Winn

Assignments:

Get final on June 1; take-home portion due June 8
 
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100A. Politics and Society: Concepts and Methods

(Following is the winter 2000 syllabus)

Professor Jonathan Fox
Latin American and Latino Studies
Merrill College Annex 58 (lower level)
Office hours: Wed. 1:30-4:30 pm & by appt.
phone: 459-5897  e-mail: jafox@cats.ucsc.edu

Tues/Thurs 12 - 1:45 pm
Social Sciences 1, Room 110

Sections:

Tues. 6:00 - 7:10, Cowell 113
Thur. 8:30 - 9:40, Cowell 113
Leah Mundell (lmundell@cats.ucsc.edu)

Course Description

This course explores key social science concepts in Latin American and Latino Studies, with an emphasis on the interdisciplinary analysis of politics and power relations. The course reviews diverse analytical strategies to better understand different ways of framing and addressing research questions. When we read a statement like "studies show …," when should we believe it? We will develop research skills and assess explanatory arguments.

The course begins by introducing different ways of thinking about a single research question - in this case, how power and inequality affect Latino access to basic education. The first section of the course reviews a range of approaches to this issue: historical and contemporary, qualitative and quantitative, macro and micro, and theoretical and empirical. The second section of the course looks at issues involved in choosing how to address research questions, such as how to identify analysts' assumptions, the role of indicators, the reasoning behind quantitative methods, and comparative case study methods. The third and final section of the course focuses on different ways to apply selected core concepts in Latin American and Latino Studies, highlighting ethnicity, identity and political participation, environmental justice, and gender. In terms of geographic focus, the course concentrates issues of power and politics in California, Texas, Mexico, Brazil, and El Salvador.

Required coursework includes two written exercises, regular lecture attendance, class participation, and a take-home final exam based on the readings and lectures. All students are expected to have e-mail accounts by the second week of class. Required readings will be based on articles in a course reader, plus three required texts: Angela Valenzuela, Subtractive Schooling: US-Mexican Youth and the Politics of Caring (Albany: SUNY Press, 1999); Lynn Stephen, Women and Social Movements in Latin America: Power from Below (Austin: University of Texas, 1997); and Laura Pulido, Environmentalism and Economic Justice: Two Chicano Struggles in the Southwest (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1996). The course reader will be made available as soon as possible. The books and the reader will be on reserve at McHenry Library.

Written coursework: the first exercise will be an annotated bibliography, focused on a social science research question chosen by the student (in consultation with the professor or TA). This exercise involves summarizing the main question and methods in each source. For the second paper, students will choose a specific journal article or book and analyze, step by step, the author's key assumptions, methodology, evidence, and the overall logic of their argument. This article or book should be chosen in consultation with the professor or TA. The take-home final exam will focus on the concepts developed throughout the course and will include questions that refer to all three required books. The final will also ask students to develop their own research proposals.

Course Schedule

1.

Jan 4

Introduction and course goals

A. Exploring different analytical strategies: The case of social inequality and access to basic education

2.

Jan 6

Checking the fine print: does the research really show what they say it shows?

Marilyn M. McMillen and Philip Kaufman, Dropout Rates in the United States: 1995 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Education Research and Development, National Center for Education Statistics, July, 1997), pp. v-x, 22-39.

[Re]framing the research question

Angela Valenzuela, Subtractive Schooling: US-Mexican Youth and the Politics of Caring (Albany: SUNY Press, 1999, pp. 3-32.

3.

Jan 11

Stepping back to the big picture: grand theories of power and social relations

Mario Barrera, "A Theory of Racial Inequality," in Antonia Darder, Rodolfo D. Torres and Henry Gutiérrez, eds., Latinos and Education: A Critical Reader (New York: Routledge, 1997), pp. 3-41.

Historical and institutional context:

Ruben Donato, The Other Struggle for Equal Schools: Mexican Americans During the Civil Rights Era (Albany: SUNY, 1997), pp. 1-10, 145-152.

Subtractive Schooling, pp. 33-60.

4.

Jan 13

Engaging the research problem close up - ethnographic research (video)

Subtractive Schooling, pp. 61-160, 273-289.

5.

Jan 18

Exploring the "politics of difference" through social analysis

Subtractive Schooling, pp. 161-271.

B. Research questions: Conceptual and methodological choices

6.

Jan 20

What is out there? Learning how to review the literature (guest lecture, Martha Ramirez, McHenry Library) Note: This session meets at McHenry Library Room 167.

Examples of literature reviews:

Jorge Durand and Douglas Murray, "Mexican Migration to the United States: A Critical Review," Latin American Research Review, 27(2), 1992, pp. 1-35.

Jonathan Fox, "State-Society Relations in Mexico: Historical Legacies and Contemporary Trends," Latin American Research Review, 35(2), 2000, pp. 183-203, forthcoming.

Andrew Szasz and Michael Meuser, "Environmental Inequalities: Literature Review and Proposals for New Directions in Research and Theory," Current Sociology, 45(3), July, 1997, pp. 99-120.

7.

Jan 25

Unpacking arguments: Identifying relationships between the environment, economics and politics (video)

Bill Weinberg, War on the Land: Ecology and Politics in Central America (London: Zed, 1991), pp. 26-32.

Marc Edelman, "Rethinking the Hamburger Thesis: Deforestation and the Crisis of Central America's Beef Exports," in Michael Painter and William Durham, eds., The Social Causes of Environmental Destruction in Latin America (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1995), pp. 25-48.

First written exercise due in lecture

8.

Jan 27

Thinking about the unthinkable: Explaining state terrorism

William Stanley, The Protection Racket State: Elite Politics, Military Extortion and Civil War in El Salvador (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1996), pp. 1-40, 178-217.

9.

Feb 1

The logic of quantitative methods: Documenting patterns of environmental injustice (Guest lecture: Prof. Manuel Pastor, UCSC Latin American & Latino Studies Program)

Manuel Pastor, "What is Environmental Justice? A Primer," Background paper, UCSC, Nov. 1997, pp. 1-6.

James L. Sadd, Manuel Pastor, J. Thomas Boer and Lori Snyder, "'Every Breath You Take …' The Demographics of Toxic Air Releases in Southern California," Economic Development Quarterly, 13(2), May, 1999, pp. 107-123 (plus exchange of comments, pp. 124-38).

10.

Feb 3

Asking questions that have no direct answers: Using indirect indicators

Jonathan Fox, "National Electoral Choices in Rural Mexico," in Laura Randall, ed., Reforming Mexico's Agrarian Reform (Armonk: M.E. Sharpe, 1996), pp. 185-206.

11.

Feb 8

Comparing diverse groups within shared spaces: Participation and power in communities of faith (video: The Journey)

John Burdick, "Rethinking the Study of Social Movements: The Case of Christian Base Communities in Urban Brazil," in Arturo Escobar and Sonia Alvarez, eds., The Making of Social Movements in Latin America (Boulder: Westview Press, 1992), pp. 171-184.

12.

Feb 10

Contrasting dimensions of political participation: Elections, social organizations and activists

Benjamin Marquez, "The Industrial Areas Foundation and the Mexican-American Community in Texas: The Politics of Issue Mobilization," F. Chris Garcia, ed., Pursuing Power: Latinos and the Political System (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1997), pp. 127-146.

Rodolfo Rosales, "Personality and Style in San Antonio Politics: Henry Cisneros and Bernardo Eureste, 1975-1985," in David Montejano, ed., Chicano Politics and Society in the Late Twentieth Century (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1999), pp. 3 - 25.

Mary Pardo, "Gendered Citizenship: Mexican American Women and Grassroots Activism in East Los Angeles, 1986-1992" in David Montejano, ed., Chicano Politics and Society in the Late Twentieth Century (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1999), pp. 58-76.

13.

Feb 15

Dilemmas of action-research: Assessing transnational organizing

Deborah Levinson-Estrada and Henry Frundt, "Toward a New Internationalism: Lessons from the Guatemalan Labor Movement," in NACLA Report on the Americas, 26(5), March-April 1995, pp. 16-21.

Van Gosse, "Active Engagement: The Legacy of Central America Solidarity," NACLA Report on the Americas, 26(5), March-April 1995, pp. 22-29.

Margaret Keck, "Parks, People and Power: The Shifting Terrain of Environmentalism," NACLA Report on the Americas, 26(5), March-April 1995, pp. 36-41.

David Brooks and Jonathan Fox, "Introduction: Movements Cross the Border," in David Brooks and Jonathan Fox, eds., Cross-Border Learning: Mexico-US Social Movement Diálogos, University of California, San Diego, Center for US-Mexican Studies, forthcoming, pp. 1-37.

14.

Feb 17

Dilemmas of action-research (cont'd): To see who gets what, follow the money

Jonathan Fox, "The World Bank and Social Capital: Contesting the Concept," Journal of International Development, 9(7), Nov-Dec., 1997, pp. 963-971.

Jonathan Fox, "Transparency for Accountability: Civil Society Monitoring of Multilateral Development Bank Anti-Poverty Projects," Development in Practice, 7(2), May, 1997, pp. 167-171.

Jonathan Fox, "Ejes Estratégicos para Influir en Las Políticas Públicas," presented at Hacienda Jurica, 1997, posted at: http://www.laneta.apc.org/trasparencia/

C. Applying Social and Political Concepts: Democratization, Gender and Ethnicity

15.

Feb 22

States, civil societies and democratization: Brazil in comparative perspective (video: Capital Sins)

Maria Elena Moreira Alves, "Interclass Alliances in the Opposition to the Military in Brazil: Consequences for the Transition Period," in Susan Eckstein, ed., Power and Popular Protest: Latin American Social Movements (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1989), pp. 277-297.

Frances Hagopian, "Traditional Politics Against State Transformation in Brazil," in Joel Migdal, Atul Kohli and Vivienne Shue, eds., State Power and Social Forces: Domination and Transformation in the Third World (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994), pp. 37-56.

Scott Mainwaring, "The Surprising Resilience of Elected Governments," Journal of Democracy, 10(3), July, 1999, pp. 101-114.

Jonathan Fox, "Latin America's Emerging Local Politics," Journal of Democracy, 5(2), April, 1994, pp. 105-115.

Second short paper due in lecture

16.

Feb 24

Democratizing civil society: Who represents whom?

Sonia Alvarez, "Reweaving the Fabric of Collective Action: Social Movements and Challenges of 'Actually Existing Democracy' in Brazil," in Richard Fox and Orin Starn, eds., Between Resistance and Revolution: Cultural Politics and Social Protest (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1997), pp. 83-110.

Jonathan Fox, "New Terrain for Rural Politics," NACLA Report on the Americas, 25(5), April, 1992.

Jonathan Fox, "Democratic Rural Development: Leadership in Regional Peasant Organizations," Development and Change, 23(2), April, 1992, pp. 1-36.

17.

Feb 29

Gender and politics

Lynn Stephen, Women and Social Movements in Latin America: Power from Below (Austin: University of Texas, 1997), pp. 1-107.

18.

Mar 2

Gender and politics (cont'd)

Women and Social Movements in Latin America, pp. 267-286.

19.

Mar 7

Ethnicity, class, and collective action

Laura Pulido, Environmentalism and Economic Justice: Two Chicano Struggles in the Southwest (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1996), pp. 3-125.

20.

Mar 9

Ethnicity, class and collective action (cont'd)

Environmentalism and Economic Justice, pp. 125-212.

21.

Mar 14

Review session, take-home final exam distributed

The final exam is due on March 17 (by 3 pm). The final can be delivered either to the Merrill College Faculty Services office or by e-mail.

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194N. Las Izquierdas en América Latina: Ayer, Hoy y Mañana

Winter 2001
miercoles 5:00 - 8:30, Merrill 132

Instructor: Susanne Jonas
Horas de Oficina (Merrill 110): mier. 1-4, jueves 11-12
Tel: Ext. 9-3232; 9-2855 para mensajes
sjonas@cats.ucsc.edu

Este seminario en español (que puede ser usado por estudiantes de LALS para su "requisito de salida/graduación") se enfocará sobre la historia de los movimientos populares y revolucionarios durante las décadas de los '60, '70, y '80, sus transformaciones durante las décadas de los '80 y '90, y las perspectivas para los movimientos de izquierda en América Latina en vísperas del siglo XXI. Dado que este seminario se realiza en español, se basa principalmente en los escritos analíticos de autores latinoamericanos y los testimonios de participantes, activistas y líderes de los movimientos de izquierda. Aúnque la organizacíon del seminario será algo histórica/cronológica (comenzando con los años '50 y '60), el enfoque principal enfatizará las evaluaciones y reevaluaciones más contemporáneas - acerca de los movimientos del pasado y presente; también vamos a discutir las nuevas perspectivas para el futuro. Finalmente, en esta época de integración hemisférica, cuando vivimos en "las Américas," habrá una sección sobre estrategias pro-justicia social de parte de los movimientos e alianzas trans-fronterizas - entre latinos en los EE.UU. y latinoamericanos. (GE Code E).

Bases para evaluación de estudiantes: Dado que éste es un seminario, la asistencia a todas las sesiones es mandatoria; cualquier ausencia necesita justificación previa. La participación y las presentaciones de parte de los estudiantes serán muy importantes. Además de las reuniones del seminario cada miércoles, los estudiantes deben reunirse en "grupos de estudio" para discutir las lecturas y formular temas de discusión.

El trabajo por escrito incluirá dos ensayos de "midterm" y un estudio/ensayo de investigación sobre un tema escogido por cada estudiante y aprobado por la instructora (y presentado al grupo). Todo el trabajo escrito, tanto como las sesiones del seminario, se realizarán en español.

Lecturas y Recursos: Habrá un texto básico - La Utopia Desarmada, de Jorge Castañeda, y un Reader. (Los dos se venderán en la clase.) Tambien, habrán libros, artículos, etc. en la sección de Reserves de la biblioteca. Además de los recursos escritos, habrán charlas de parte de participantes lationoamericanos, películas y videos, etc.

Sesiones: (dates may vary for Winter 2001)

1. (sesión #1) (5 de enero);

2. (12 de enero):

3-4. (19 y 26 de enero):

5. (2 de febrero):

6. (9 de febrero)

7-8. (16 y 23 de febrero):

9. (1 de marzo):

10. (8 de marzo):

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