The Democracy Development Machine: Neoliberalism, Radical Pessimism, and Authoritarian Populism in Mayan Guatemala

Nicholas Copeland

Published by Cornell University Press 2019

The Democracy Development Machine

Neoliberalism, Radical Pessimism, and Authoritarian Populism in Mayan Guatemala

Nicholas Copeland
Funded by: Virginia Tech as part of the TOME initiative

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781501736070

Overview
Contents

About this book

Nicholas Copeland sheds new light on rural politics in Guatemala and across neoliberal and post-conflict settings in The Democracy Development Machine. This historical ethnography examines how governmentalized spaces of democracy and development fell short, enabling and disfiguring an ethnic Mayan resurgence.

In a passionate and politically engaged book, Copeland argues that the transition to democracy in Guatemalan Mayan communities has led to a troubling paradox. He finds that while liberal democracy is celebrated in most of the world as the ideal, it can subvert political desires and channel them into illiberal spaces. As a result, Copeland explores alternative ways of imagining liberal democracy and economic and social amelioration in a traumatized and highly unequal society as it strives to transition from war and authoritarian rule to open elections and free-market democracy.The Democracy Development Machine follows Guatemala's transition, reflects on Mayan involvement in politics during and after the conflict, and provides novel ways to link democratic development with economic and political development.

Thanks to generous funding from Virginia Tech and its participation in TOME (Toward an Open Monograph Ecosystem), the ebook editions of this book are available as Open Access (OA) volumes from Cornell Open (cornellpress.cornell.edu/cornell-open) and other Open Access repositories.

Author / Editor information

Nicholas Copeland is Assistant Professor of American Indian Studies at Virginia Tech. He is an H. F. Guggenheim Fellow and co-author of The World of Wal-Mart.

Reviews

Edward Fischer, Vanderbilt University:

Nicholas Copeland has written a powerful critique of grassroots democracy. Copeland captures the complicated ways local allegiances work in practice, shattering romantic notions of community cooperation. This reveals much about Guatemala's troubled politics and enriches our understanding of the multifaceted, often unintended, effects of social action.

Jennifer Burrell, Professor, College of Arts and Sciences, SUNY-Albany, and author of Maya After War:

The Democracy Development Machine is a fantastic book. It’s exactly what political ethnography should be—insightful, analytically rigorous, ethnographically rich, and provocative.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Abbreviations Publicly Available Download PDF	xv
Introduction: A Transition to Misery Open Access Download PDF	1
1. “They Committed No Crime”: Developing Democratic Memories Open Access Download PDF	25
2. Nos Falta Capacidad: Training Enterprising Selves Open Access Download PDF	55
3. The Capacity for Democracy: Transforming Democratic Imaginaries Open Access Download PDF	84
4. Radical Pessimism: Neoliberal Democratic Atmosphere Open Access Download PDF	109
5. Parties and Projects: Democratizing Sovereign Violence Open Access Download PDF	137
6. Cruel Populism: Mutilating the People Open Access Download PDF	166
Conclusion: Reorienting Democracy Open Access Download PDF	193
Notes Open Access Download PDF	217
Works Cited Open Access Download PDF	233
Index Open Access Download PDF	249

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Audience: General/trade;
Pages
- Main content: 282
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 1
- Images: 6
- Other: 6 b&w halftones, 1 map
Keywords: Democracy; development; Mayan politics; neoliberalism; Sampedranos

eBook

Published: May 15, 2019
ISBN: 9781501736070