Latin America and the Rise of the Global South

3 units

The rise of the global south - and the reordering of global geopolitics, economics and cultural imaginaries - is characterized by progressive change and intense conflict. Economic growth coincides with the impacts of global warming, the assault on natural resources, the rise of new consumers and the entrenchment of deep inequalities. We also see the emergence of cultural and political formations that range from the horrific to the inspiring. Latin America is a central node of the new global south. Here history takes unpredictable turns in the face of declining U.S. hegemony, the economic growth of Brazil, legacies of militarism and political violence, a feverish attack on nature, resurgent economic nationalism, and defiant anti-globalization movements. Through close reading of contemporary ethnographies of Latin America we explore emergent cultural and political-economic processes in the region, we consider south-south articulations (theoretical, cultural, political-economic) between Latin America, China, Africa, and India, and we reflect on the changing role, meaning, and relationships of the United States in the region.