Indigenous Peoples, Civil Society, and the Neo-Liberal State in Latin America

Anthropologists, historians, and activists explore the role civil society plays in indigenous politics in the region. Their topics include the Andean Highlands during the 19th and 20th centuries, the power of Ecuador's indigenous communities in an era of cultural pluralism, the Consejo Regional Indigena del Cauca in Columbia, indigenous nations in Guatemalan democracy and the state, and local ends and development in a Q'eqchi' Maya community. Annotation c2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Edward F. Fischer is Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Latin American Studies at Vanderbilt University. His work focuses on issues of political economy, identity politics, and globalization; he has conducted long-term fieldwork with the Maya of Guatemala and in Germany. His publications include Maya Cultural Activism in Guatemala (1996), Cultural Logics and Global Economies: Maya Identity in Thought and Practice (2001), Tecpan Guatemala: A Modern Maya Town in Local and Global Context (2002, with Carol Hendrickson), and Broccoli and Desire: Global Connections and Maya Struggles in Postwar Guatemala (2006, with Peter Benson). His current research focuses on the interplay of moral values and economic rationalities.