News and Events

  Gabriel Hetland, Associate Professor of Latin American, Caribbean, and Latina/o Studies
Faculty Affiliate, Sociology Department, SUNY Albany
Olin 102  5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EST/GMT-5
This will be a book talk. In case you want an image of the book or other details, click here.Is democracy possible only when it is safe for elites? Latin American history seems to suggest so. Right-wing forces have repeatedly deposed elected governments that challenged the rich and accepted democracy only after the defanging of the Left and widespread market reform. Latin America’s recent “left turn” raised the question anew: how would the Right react if democracy threatened elite interests?
This book examines the complex relationship of the Left, the Right, and democracy through the lens of local politics in Venezuela and Bolivia. Drawing on two years of fieldwork, Gabriel Hetland compares attempts at participatory reform in cities governed by the Left and Right in each country. He finds that such measures were more successful in Venezuela than Bolivia regardless of which type of party held office, though existing research suggests that deepening democracy is much more likely under a left party. Hetland accounts for these findings by arguing that Venezuela’s ruling party achieved hegemony—presenting its ideas as the ideas of all—while Bolivia’s ruling party did not. The Venezuelan Right was compelled to act on the Left’s political terrain; this pushed it to implement participatory reform in an unexpectedly robust way. In Bolivia, demobilization of popular movements led to an inhospitable environment for local democratic deepening under any party.

Democracy on the Ground shows that, just as right-wing hegemony can reshape the Left, leftist hegemony can reshape the Right. Offering new perspectives on participation, populism, and Latin American politics, this book challenges widespread ideas about the constraints on democracy.

Presented by the Office of the Dean of Inclusive Excellence and the Latin-American and Iberian Studies Program
Chapel of the Holy Innocents  5:30 pm – 6:30 pm EDT/GMT-4
In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, the Office of the Dean of Inclusive Excellence (ODIE) and the Latin-American and Iberian Studies Program (LAIS) proudly present an Afro-Caribbean percussion experience featuring visiting artist Roland Vazquez and Pito Castillo.  

Come Join us in the Chapel of Holy Innocents on Wednesday, October 11, 2023, from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm. Delicious food will be provided by Cafe Con Leche of Rhinebeck.

Reem-Kayden Center Laszlo Z. Bito '60 Auditorium  7:00 pm – 9:00 pm EST/GMT-5
Please join us for a screening of Three Summers, followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Sandra Kogut. See attached flyer for details. 

Bertelsmann Campus Center, Weis Cinema  5:30 pm – 7:30 pm EST/GMT-5
Join the Human Rights Project for screenings and discussions with Brazilian filmmaker and current Human Rights Project Fellow Sandra Kogut. See flyer for details.