The Politics of Institutional Weakness in Latin America

Date: 

Thursday, October 1, 2020, 4:00pm


This event is virtual, to register click here

Speakers: Mala Htun, University of New Mexico; Eduardo Darget, Pontifica Universidad Catolica del Peru; Alisha Holland, Harvard University; Daniel Brinks, University of Texas-Austin; Steven Levitsky, Harvard University; Maria Victoria Murillo, Columbia University
Moderated by: Javier Auyero, University of Texas-Austin

Observers often take institutional weakness as an exogenous feature of the landscape, decrying the many ways in which weak institutions get in the way of accomplishing various political agendas. In the book "The Politics of Institutional Weakness in Latin America, these three scholars turn the tables, showing the ways in which institutional weakness is itself a political strategy. Their analysis draws on the contributions of chapters covering an array of formal institutions, from constitutions and electoral rules, to labor laws and indigenous rights regimes. In this presentation, we will hear from the editors and from the authors of chapters on rules pertaining to gender violence, street-vending and squatting, and environmental and labor standards. 

Presented in collaboration with Institute of Latin American Studies, Columbia University; LLILAS Benson Latin American Studies and Collections