I investigated the stereotypes of Brazilians identified as black using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methodsunobtrusive observation, 12 informal interviews, and a content analysis of 33 newspaper issues and 26 magazine issues. The results of my analyses indicate that skin color is more important than racial classification in relation to stereotypes. Certain stereotypes are more applicable to darker skinned Brazilians, while others are only applicable to race. The Brazilian media oscillated between presenting a more egalitarian view of Brazilians of all colors in prominent positions and replicating stereotypes. In general, darker skinned Brazilian males were likely to experience negative consequences of stereotypes due to their gender, skin color and socioeconomic status.

<p> This dissertation generates a broader qualitative and quantitative profile of Peru's middle class. It examines an unstudied group of Peruvian immigrants living in the greater New York City area, who are largely of middle-class origins, as are their families who remain behind in Peru. It analyzes immigrants and non-immigrants' lifestyles, changes in family dynamics that occur as a consequence of emigration of one family member, and the effect of remittances on middle-class lifestyles, identity, and experience at home. A close analysis of participants' life-styles and interactions provides conclusions about what defines Peruvian middle class status, and the factors that shape an immigrant's decision to migrate and pursue remittances. By closely examining immigrants from Lima now living in the greater New York area, and their economic, social, and cultural ties to their households back in Peru, I examine remittances as the nexus linking immigrants to their families that are now redefined by a more distant relationship. As social ties are commodified, the relationships between immigrants and non-immigrants prioritize decisions about money, including its production, transmission, reception, and distribution. Consequently, family structure often shifts to reflect a new priority on investment projects for the future over family reunification. By researching immigration and remittances, I analyze this shift in middle-class Peruvian family structure and its impact on social class, identity, and even plans for future emigration. This dissertation also refocuses the analytical lens on the uniquely middle-class origins of Peru's immigrants, challenging scholarly and popular assumptions about immigration that portray poverty eradication and reduction as the primary reason for migration.</p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> Transnational Peruvian Immigration, Peruvian Middle Class, Peruvian Remittances.</p>

Amidst student protests that took over the public schools in Chile, student leaders developed an outline of demands for change related to overcoming the vast inequity of opportunity entrenched in the educational system. These were documented in 2011 in the Bases Para un Acuerdo Social por la Educación Chilena. This thesis examines the legacy of the voucher system implemented by the former dictator, and the policies which have led to potentially the most segregated education system in the world, and at least among developed countries. Using Henry Levins frameworks for vouchers and for the division of responsibilities in a portfolio school district, the work explores the hypothetical consequences of carrying the student demands related to changes in administration and the administration of finances to fruition. Looking at the goals of the student movement, and the Acuerdo Social, the author suggests focusing on policy tools which will more directly incentivize changes within the current system rather than attempting a full system change, which could introduce new opportunity for error without solving current problems. In the final chapter, the author provides four criteria for deciding on the appropriate avenues for change, and suggests teacher policy as an area that meets all four criteria.

<p> This project offers a resource for the training of lay preachers from the first world who have participated in mission trips to the developing world of El Salvador. The project further enhances the experience of the mission trip by giving mission participants the tools to proclaim the gospel in light of their mission experience. Chapter One explores the unique political, economic, religious and cultural realities of the mission territory of El Salvador. Chapter Two examines the spiritual history of the missionaries themselves within the culture of the United States, exploring the various spiritual movements that have shaped their nation. Liberation Theology and its impact on the people of El Salvador and the United States will be discussed in Chapter Three. Its profound impact on lay spirituality and their understanding of the scriptures will also be examined. Chapter Four outlines four preparation meetings for missionaries as well as the spiritual agenda for the mission trip to El Salvador. In Chapter Five, eleven key points for effective preaching will be offered in a description of a workshop to be given to returning missionaries to enable them to proclaim what they have seen and heard on their mission trip. A qualitative and quantitative analysis of the effectiveness of this workshop as well as sample homilies will also be presented in this chapter. The project concludes with reflections on the benefits of missionary preaching for both the missionaries and their sponsoring communities.</p>

<p> This paper examines the evolving methods of incorporating indigenous and popular Mexican music since the Nationalistic period in M&eacute;xico. This project report also shows how the integration of Mexican folk music in Mexican composers' works has changed throughout the years. This paper analyzes the compositions <i>Sinfon&iacute;a india</i> written by Carlos Ch&aacute;vez and <i>&iexcl;&Uacute;nicamente la verdad!</i> written by Gabriela Ort&iacute;z. This paper also analyzes "<i>Tezcatlipoca, </i> A Sacrifice Dance," a chamber orchestra work by myself, a Mexican-American student composer. "<i>Tezcatlipoca,</i> A Sacrifice Dance" incorporates Mexican folk music as well as Carlos Ch&aacute;vez, Gabriela Ort&iacute;z and many other Mexican composers.</p>

<p> This research is on the ways Puerto Rican women fought for their reproductive justice. It covers the years 1930 through to the 1980s on the island of Puerto Rico and the city of New York. The fight was not always won in the streets or in the courts but also through everyday struggles to survive. There were multiple forms of resistance used in order to fight for control of their own bodies and for the lives of their children. Reproductive justice is not limited to the right to have or not have children but also the ability to exercise choice and freedom over the children you have, over your own body and sexuality. The resistance led by these women was in all the ways they fought against oppressive forces which limited their ability to exercise reproductive freedom. The research was conducted through archival records, secondary sources and an interview conducted with my mother to learn the stories of the women in my own family and how they reflect the history I had researched. Puerto Rican women dealt with overcoming a high rate of sterilization, migration to the United States where they were met with racism and hostility and the ability to rise up and organize to demonstrate their voices as a collective. None of this could have been gained without the drive to survive.</p><p>

The purpose of this study is to determine whether the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) plays a role in facilitating multilateral security mechanisms among its members. The central question of this work asks whether regional integration results in the establishment of cooperative security mechanisms. The dependent variable involves multilateral security initiatives within the MERCOSUR, in the present context of inter-American relations. The independent variables include regional transitions to democracy, the regional strategic consequences of the ending of the Cold War, and regional integration experiments. This work departs from the stated central question to the particular case of international involvement in the Paraguayan political crises of 1996 and 1999. The active intervention of Paraguay's largest MERCOSUR partners, Brazil and Argentina, in the course of these developments is analyzed. The evidence demonstrates that economic integration does not necessarily result in the establishment of formal cooperative security mechanisms. In the present context of inter-American relations, however, there exists a tendency toward multilateral regional responses to internal threats to democracy as witnessed in the Paraguayan case. This project shows that membership in a regional economic organization, as seen by the ASEAN, European Union and MERCOSUR, enhances the establishment of common security measures.

In the early 1960âs, internal conflict erupted in the majority of Central American countries. Substantial setbacks in economic development, human right, and social aspects in these countries were the result of the democracy struggling with this conflict. Bogin and Keep (1999) reported that height declined among Mayan and Ladino children from all social classes in Guatemala from 1974 to 1984 (This period included some of the most devastating fighting of the civil war), but an even stronger decline was seen in low-SES (socio economic status) , the average height decline around nine centimeters differences between high-SES and low-SES. During the armed conflict, Guatemalans Maya with low -SES suffered irregular supply of water, no safe water, unsanitary condition, economic instability, declines in food production, and lack healthcare. Maya Indians have been to object of massive discrimination and political repression with a continuous human rights violation. My thesis examines what kind of implications the internal armed conflict in Guatemala has had on health and nutrition matters in Maya rural life. The violence against the Maya people is the materialization of the structural violence that permeates the body, community, and social fabric. The structural violence perspective allows for a nuanced and global account of the pathogenic effects of health under warfare. My thesis proposes a framework for which to examine the structural, collective, and individual violence embodied in chronical social conditions about health and nutrition.

The small town of Chinchero in the highlands of Cusco, Peru is a popular tourist stop known for its rich tradition of handmade textiles and weaving techniques. The female weavers and vendors in Chinchero have developed a competitive market of Textile Centers that sell an aestheticized and commercialized tradition to tourists. The quaint town is now faced with plans to build the new Chinchero International Airport, which would become the largest airport in Peru. This thesis analyzes ethnographic findings from 2017 to examine how the female vendors of Chinchero perceive the airport will affectâand already has affectedâtheir well-being. Well-being is measured both subjectively through understandings of the Quechua term sumaq kawsay and objectively through a life satisfaction scale ranked from 1 to 10. In their explanations, the women expressed values of community, reciprocal relationships, and environmental harmony that they believe they are still upholding in their peaceful lives. However, they identify the airport as a direct threat to these pillars of sumaq kawsay with the projectâs impending urbanization, pollution, increased traffic, and heightened economic competition. Although the airport project has been postponed for four decades due to corruption and political conflicts, the vendors have already adapted their economic activities and discourses. Overall, this thesis contributes to discussions of the effects of unfinished megaprojectsâabsent presencesâand to anthropological studies of well-being.

Starting in 1960, a 36-year Civil War ravaged Guatemala ultimately leaving 200,000 people dead and 45,000 people disappeared. The violence that drove Guatemalans from the country during the war eventually saw a boomerang effect when U.S. immigration policy shifted and vicious gangs returned to the nation after years of operation in the United States. The powerful presence of the military and the lack of checks and balances during years of conflict allowed patterns of corruption to emerge both between officials and drug trafficking organizations and with elite Guatemalan families. Shifts in the path of the international drug trade allowed traffickers to take advantage of this history and move into Guatemala, clamoring for territory. By the time the Peace Accords were signed and the war ended, a poorly conceived plan to remove the military without an adequate civilian police force to take their place created an environment in which gangs, drug trafficking organizations and local bosses could operate illegally and freely. Together, the Guatemalan Civil War, U.S. immigration policy and shifts in international drug trafficking practices significantly debilitated the Guatemalan state, making it ill equipped to provide for its citizens basic social service and safety needs.