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Recent political developments in Bolivia have placed it at the center of what scholars describe as Latin America’s 'shift to the left'. The 2005 election of Evo Morales, the country's first indigenous president, represented a major break from the Boliviam history of exluding indigenous citizens. I examine the circumstances that produced such a dramatic political shift, beginning with a historical consideration of the asymmetrical socioeconomic and political relationships that have characterized Bolivia.  In the 1980s and 90s, indigenous groups joined other social movements to protest the unresponsive nature of traditional political parties and the effects of neoliberal economic policies. The rise of Morales’ MAS party, from a locally-based Civil Society Organization to a national political party, is a direct result of the lack of representative policy making. I consider the growing polarization of Bolivian politics, which has become increasingly intense as Bolivian elites radicalize their opposition to the Morales Administration. Given the magnitude of these changes, and  the transformation of Bolivia’s politics and society, I argue that it is better understood as a historical process rather than a transitory ideological shift.    .pdf

Despite having a relatively repressive government, Uganda’s news media surpasses those in most other African countries in terms of being vocal, democratic, innovative, and critical of the current government. However, Uganda’s press is ‘free’ only in comparison to what it has been in the past. I explore the relationship between press and politics in Uganda within the context of Uganda’s fragile democracy. First I review the literature that addresses the role of the press in the democratization of developing countries. Second, I analyze the legal provisions relating to freedom of press in Uganda. Third, I analyze the content of two newspapers: the government-owned newspaper, The New Vision, and an independently owned newspaper, The Monitor. This study illustrates the importance of a free press and the role of ownership in democratically developing countries. After discussing the limitations and obstacles that Ugandan journalism face, I offer general policy suggestions aimed at protecting press freedoms and strengthening Ugandan democracy.    .pdf

In the early morning hours of December 6,  1921, representatives of Ireland’s revolutionary government, sent to negotiate a peace with Britain, signed a document they believed would provide for Ireland an unprecedented amount of independence. The “Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland,” removed the British military presence in Ireland—a fact for nearly seven hundred years—and destroyed the political and legislative union between Great Britain and Ireland, effectively ending British domination of Irish life. Naturally, the Anglo-Irish Treaty, as it came to be called, did not encapsulate all Irish demands, but was rather a compromise struck between the two nations. Irish delegates signed the Treaty knowing that it represented the best terms for which they could have hoped at the time, feeling that the rest of Ireland would recognize it as a great step towards independence. Yet despite all of the Treaty’s merits, it was met with opposition when presented to the Dáil, Ireland’s revolutionary parliament. Those who supported the Treaty heralded its practical benefits, while those who opposed it considered the agreement a betrayal of Irish Nationalist ideals and an abandonment of the Republic so valiantly declared by the heroes of the Irish nation in 1916. The signing and ratification of the Treaty is the single most influential factor precipitating the Irish Civil War. Its symbolic shortcomings provided grounds for objection and opposition to those who did not wish to see Ireland stop short of total victory. I consider here the question of whether the Irish Civil war should be describe as a 'revolution'. I argue that the Civil War lacked certain characteristics commonly associated with revolutionary movements: a specific ideology; a set of aims consistent with it; and a sense of inevitability. I argue that ultimately the Irish Civil War should not be seen as a revolutionary conflict but rather as an overblown disagreement between Ireland’s elite politicians.     .pdf

During the 1883 cholera epidemic in Egypt, British colonial officials tried to prove that the epidemic had originated in Egypt — not from a British ship travelling through the Suez Canal. Admitting the latter would have meant quarantining the Canal, slowing British trade and diminishing profits. Why would the British, the dominant power in the region, attempt to ‘scientifically’ prove the local-origin theory against mounting evidence that suggested otherwise? I argue that the British were concerned about protecting their image as a modern, civilized power — an image that required them to use the language of science and rationality even while approaching the question of cholera from standpoint of political and economic self interest. Through an analysis of the reports and correspondence of British officials during the epidemic, I show that, although Britain officials relied arguments that today seem outdated, they did so in the name of modernity  — a specifically British notion of modernity. This little-studied episode of colonial history provides a window into the relationship between British imperial aims and the progress of medical science.    .pdf

This paper will examine how attitudes toward the Peace Corps have changed over its fort-five year history. As a soft diplomacy tool of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps has been widely heralded for achieving its three goals: (1) to help people in developing countries meet their needs, (2) to help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of people served, and (3) to help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans. Peace Corps has also been widely criticized for not actually achieving development objectives, while instead being used as a tool for American interests. Despite these debates, Peace Corps and its programs and objectives have remained relatively unexamined and continue to see growth in funding and manpower. Unlike other foreign policy tools, social science scholars have not systemically studied Peace Corps’ programs, or the justifications provided for continued funding, in order to properly conduct this debate. This study examines the entire history of Congressional Budget Reports about the Peace Corps will be studied to evaluate how Peace Corps programs are described and justified. This discourse will be coded and the issues put into historical context. By comprehensively and systematically assessing the role of Peace Corps as it is understood by U.S. foreign policy makers, I seek to provide valuable insights on the shifting character of soft diplomacy tools.   .pdf