The first one is by Forrest D. Colburn on Nicaragua, Forlorn. Colburn is a professor at City University of New York and a visiting professor at Incae. Here's his conclusion:
Countries, including those that are small and poor, do change. However, the case of Nicaragua, looking back through its recent history, suggests that change, if it comes, is not likely to follow any planned or anticipated trajectory. It is not going to be guided by any single individual or any cogent set of ideas—particularly any that seek to press their influence from abroad. Whatever change takes place in the future will likely just be a reworking, with contemporary flourishes, of the past.The second article is on Sex and the Barrio: A Clash of Faith in Latin America by Anna Edgerton and Ina Sotirova. Edgerton is a journalist based in New York who just returned from Argentina and Sotirova is a multimedia journalist based in New York who has previously worked in Nicaragua.
Attitudes toward sex and sexuality are evolving, if slowly, in Latin America. Much of the progress is determined by the vastly divergent power of the Catholic Church across the continent.Despite objection from Catholic officials, same-sex marriage is now legal in Mexico City and Argentina. Abortions are also legal in Mexico’s capital. Such progressive legislation speaks to an accelerating secularization, although the cultural shift is far from universal. In many parts of the region, conservative Catholic views on social issues continue to dominate the public and educational discourse, often to the detriment of the region’s poorest women and youth.I'll continue to try to highlight academic articles that are not behind paywalls. If you come across any that you think will be of interest to those interested in Central America or if you'd like to promote your own academic work, please shoot me an email.
