James F. Siekmeier, "Latin American Nationalism: Identity in a Globalizing World" (Bloomsbury, 2017)

Summary

This is a Special Series on Third World Nationalism.

In the wake of a rise in nationalism around the world, and its general condemnation by liberals and the left, in addition to the rise of China and Russia, we have put together this series on Third World Nationalism to nuance the present discourse on nationalism, note its centrality to anti-imperial, anti-colonial politics around the world, the reconfiguration of global power, and its inextricability from mainstream politics in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

Today my guest is James Siekmeier, author of Latin American Nationalism: Identity in a Globalizing World (Bloomsbury Academic, 2017).

With ethnic and class-based national movements taking center stage in countries like Bolivia and Venezuela, nationalism has proven to be one of the most durable and important movements in Latin America. In understanding the history of these nationalisms, we can understand how Latin America relates to the rest of the world.

As Latin America inserts itself into a rapidly globalizing world, understanding the changing nature of national identify and nationalism is key. By tracing the important historical origins of present-day Latin American nationalism, this book gives readers a thorough introduction to the subject. Only by understanding how nationalism came to be such an important social and political force, can we understand its significance today. In turn, understanding Latin American nationalism helps us understand how Latin America shapes, and is shaped by, a rapidly globalizing world.

Kirk Meighoo is Public Relations Officer for the United National Congress, the Official Opposition in Trinidad and Tobago. His career has spanned media, academia, and politics for three decades.

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Kirk Meighoo

Kirk Meighoo is Public Relations Officer for the United National Congress, the Official Opposition in Trinidad and Tobago. His career has spanned media, academia, and politics for three decades.

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