Latin America's Turbulent Transitions: The Future of Twenty-First Century Socialism.

• Author: Yegen, Oya
• Position: Book review

Latin America's Turbulent Transitions: The Future of Twenty-First Century Socialism

By Roger Burbach, Michael Fox and Federico Fuentes

London: Zed Books, 2013, 208 pages, $29.95, ISBN: 9781848135673.

The surge of left governments in Latin America since the early the 2000s has not gone unnoticed. The region has made great strides in consolidating electoral democracy since the days of violent coups. With the exception of Cuba, where one-party rule remains and a few short interruptions such as the 2009 Honduran coup and presidential impeachment in Paraguay in 2012, elections have been the norm of acquiring power. One significant outcome of this trend is the expanding ideological spectrum of governments. The centerleft and left governments of Latin America are changing the face of the region through the ballot box that once had failed them through armed struggle. The future of the Bolivarian Revolution following Chavez's death, another electoral win for Evo Morales, and the possibility of the reelection for Rafael Correa all raise questions whether the "new left" is here to stay.

A timely contribution by three analysts: Roger Burbach, Michael Fox and Federico Fuentes, Latin America's Turbulent Transitions: The Future of Twenty-First Century Socialism, offers its readers a thorough review of the revival of socialism in the region. The book focuses on two processes that are simultaneously taking place and reinforcing one another: the declining role of the United States as the hegemonic power of the region and the promoter of the neoliberal model and the rejuvenation of socialism in Latin America. The authors observe that together these processes are giving rise to growing integration of the region. A main contention of the book is that the contemporary socialism experienced in Latin America is different than the socialist project of the previous era, which was essentially state socialism that produced authoritarian states and has been discredited with the collapse of the Soviet bloc. "21st century socialism," unlike the previous project, embraces the democratic roots and derives its power from social movements. It is this focus on social movements and the bottom-up process, which has produced the new left governments of Latin America that gives a compelling twist to this study.

The social movements all around the region, such as the CONAIE in Ecuador, the Movement towards Socialism (MAS) in Bolivia, the Movement of Landless Rural Workers (MST) in...