Honduras: Coup and Democracy

July 7, 2009 - 4:00 pm

Causes of the Coup: Political and Socio-Economic Conditions in Honduras since 2000
Mark Ungar, Brooklyn College and The Graduate Center, CUNY

Political Crisis in Honduras: Role of the OAS and the Inter-American System
Martin Poblete, Columbia University Seminar on Latin America

Comments on the Promotion of Democracy in the Americas
Mauricio Font, Bildner Center and The Graduate Center and Queens College, CUNY

Moderator:
Desmond Arias, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY

About the Speakers:

Mark Ungar is Associate Professor of Political Science at Brooklyn College and of Criminal Justice at the CUNY Graduate Center. Publications include the books Elusive Reform: Democracy and the Rule of Law in Latin America; Violence and Politics: Globalization’s Paradox; and the forthcoming Policing Democracy: Overcoming Obstacles to Citizen Security Reform in Latin America. Ungar has also been an advisor on police reform for international organizations and agencies in Latin America, including the national police and government of Honduras.

Martin Poblete is Chairman of Columbia University’s Seminar on Latin America and Professor of History. His research focuses on matters of church and state relations. He is the author of ‘From the Patronato to Pinochet’ in Religious Freedom and Evangelization in Latin America by Paul E. Sigmund.

Mauricio Font is Director of the Bildner Center for Western Hemisphere Studies and Professor of Sociology at The Graduate Center and Queens College, City University of New York. His research examines problems of development and reform in Brazil, Cuba and Latin America as well as international cooperation in the Western Hemisphere. Prof. Font’s current research focuses in part on reform processes in Latin America, where institutional and social actors at all levels of government have been designing advanced approaches to address social needs, economic disparities, and world development.