When he wrote “Utopia”, a satire published in 1516, Tomás Moro he was careful not to give an exact location for his imaginary island with his perfect society. But the reader is given to understand that she was situated off the coast of Brazil. It’s not by chance.
The idea of Utopia may be universal, but since Colón and the European meeting with the Americaswhich took place not long before Moro wrote, has had a particular association with America Latina. This association fed on the myths of The Golden and the Amazonasof the stories of the prodigious civilizations of the ancient Mexico and of the incasand from European notions of the new world as a natural paradise populated by the “noble savage” of Rousseau and as a blank slate on which any project might be inscribed. “We have clung to utopia because we were founded as a utopia, because the memory of the good society is in our origins and also at the end of the road, as the fulfillment of our hopes”, as he wrote Carlos Fuentesa Mexican novelist.
This vein continues to this day in Latin American politics. The utopian impulse is to “refound” rather than reform countries, expressed in new constitutions or in the disqualification of political opponents. It often runs counter to the more modest but achievable goals of good governance and steady progress.
Take, for example, the proposal of nueva Constitution presented this month in Chile. With 110 articles in its chapter on “fundamental rights and guarantees”, it is a detailed project of an ideal society in which no one is discriminated once morest and everyone enjoys equality, although some more than others. It guarantees everyone the right, among other things, to “neurodiversity”, al “libre developing” of “personality, identity and life projects“y al”leisure, rest and enjoyment of free time”. It also requires the State to promote and guarantee “harmonious interrelation and respect for all symbolic, cultural and heritage expressions”. Never mind that these aspirations are hopelessly vapid, often at odds with each other, and highly unlikely to be realized.
Or the newly elected president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro. Not only did he originally propose to ban all new oil, gas and mineral exploration in a country that relies on mining and oil for more than half of its exports, but he also promised that the state would employ 11% of the population. who is unemployed (her finance minister appointee says this will not happen). the president of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obradordoes not promise a monotonous policy and administration, but a “quarter transformation”, similar to the independence of your country or its revolution of 1910-17. And the outsiders, from Butch Cassidyan American train robber who died in Boliviato a group of German anti-vaccines who set up a commune in the jungle of Paraguay during the pandemic, they continue to see Latin America as a place to pursue your dreams without being bothered by laws or restrictions.
The problem with this quest for utopia is that it coexists with a generally poor government. This may not be a coincidence. As explained by the Colombian essayist Carlos Granés in “American delusion”, a monumental exploration of culture and politics in America Latina in the 20th century published earlier this year, the utopian infatuation of the region’s intellectuals with nationalism and revolution led them to despise liberal democracy and embrace authoritarian leaders of the right or left. These impulses have become a Latin American political brand. “If we renounce utopia and revolution, what place would Latin America have in the concert of nations?” wondered Mr. Granés. His cult reached its apogee with the That Guevaraliberation theology and subcomandante Marcos and his Zapatista Army of National Liberation, with their respective examples of sacrifice and redemption through guerrilla warfare once morest imperialism, the exaltation of the poor, and what Mr. Granés calls “revolution as performing art”.
The longing for utopia is a response to the injustices and inequalities of Latin American societies. But it can compound those problems. Utopia slips too easily into a dystopia of poverty and police states, as has happened in Fidel Castro’s Cuba, Daniel Ortega’s Nicaragua, and Hugo Chávez’s Venezuela.. Even when you don’t, it can lead to frustration and backlash, as may be the fate of Chile.
It is much better than the politicians of America Latina be honest with your people regarding the limits of what is possible and follow the path of constant progress instead of the search for paradise.
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