Main Seminar: Book launch: The Recasting of the Latin American Right: Polarization and Conservative Reactions
Convenors: Eduardo Posada-Carbo & Felipe Krause
Speaker: André Borges, University of Brasilia
Commentary: Victor Araújo, University of Reading
This edited volume relies on a variety of research methods to investigate the strategies of the Latin American right following left turn of the early 2000s. We demonstrate that the post-2000 political right differs from previous right-wing generations in that it has emphasized cultural issues to mobilize conservative groups and sectors that are resistant to changes in family structures and sexual and gender rights. While we do find empirical evidence on the increasing polarization of Latin American societies regarding issues such as LGBT rights, we contend that conservative actors have actively sought to politicize cultural issues rather than simply responding to changes in mass attitudes. The book also analyzes how progressive policy and value changes in Latin America fostered a conservative reaction that ultimately favored the emergence of radical/extremist right-wing forces in the recent period.
André Borges is an associate professor at the Institute of Political Science at the University of Brasilia. His research focuses on political institutions, electoral behavior, parties and party systems and has appeared in Government & Opposition, Party Politics and in the Journal of Politics in Latin America. He has co-edited The Recasting of the Latin American Right (Cambridge University Press) with Ryan Lloyd and Gabriel Vommaro.
Victor Araújo is a Lecturer in Comparative Politics in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Reading. His research falls into the interplay between comparative politics and political behaviour, primarily focusing on the politics of non-Western regions, mainly Brazil and other Latin American democracies. Victor’s work has appeared in the Journal of Politics, the British Journal of Political Science, Comparative Political Studies, Research & Politics, and Latin American Research Review, among others.
