The Historical Roots of Social Exclusion in Latin America and the Caribbean
Programme
Thursday 24 and Friday 25 June 2010
Convenor: Ame Bergés
Sponsored by the Economic History Society Conferences and Initiatives Fund and the Society for Latin American Studies
This intensive two-day workshop takes a broad comparative and historical perspective on the roots of social exclusion and the formation of the social contract in Latin America and the Caribbean, from the nature of inherited institutions to the nature and consequences of the struggle for Independence in the former New World colonies.
The workshop intends to explore the following:
- If the struggle for Independence drew strength from an emergent national identity and a desire for greater self-determination, and if the wars of Independence forged new avenues for upward mobility in the Americas, then what accounts for the divergent trajectories of social exclusion between the North and the South, between countries that share similar institutional legacies, and perhaps even within countries themselves (e.g., Quebec; the US South)?
- To what extent can the differences in social exclusion be attributed to the nature and evolution of institutions that were inherited and retained from Colonial and pre-Colonial times, or to the new, liberal, Constitutions?
- And to what extent was Constitutional intent for a more inclusive, participatory, citizenship thwarted by political and economic power structures that saw to a far more selective rather than universal application of rights?
The programme will consist of the following panels:
PART 1: INHERITED INSTITUTIONS
Agenda: What institutional blueprint did the British, French, Portuguese and Spanish empires leave for the formulation of the social contract in the Americas? How inclusive/exclusive were their societies at this time? How inclusive/exclusive were the Pre-Columbian societies, and how did these structures evolve with the arrival of the colonists?
PART 2: HISTORICAL ROOTS OF SOCIAL EXCLUSION IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
Agenda: In which ways did the new constitutions mark a significant break from the Colonial powers? To what extent did they articulate a ‘new’ social contract? What scope was there for upward mobility, for whom, and how permanent? What were the new social priorities, and how well reflected were they in public expenditure and budgets?
PART 3: THE US AND CANADA AS POINTS FOR CONTRAST
The Conference will take place in London at the Institute for the Study of the Americas on Thursday 24 and Friday 25 June 2010.
Ame Bergés
Institute for the Study of the Americas
Senate House
Malet Street
London WC1E 7HU
Tel: +44 (0)20 7862 8973
ame.berges@sas.ac.uk