Neoliberalism | IRGAC

Neoliberalism

Authoritarianism and "Progress": Looking at Bolivia from the Crucible of Santa Cruz. An open dialogue.

Theory & Research How is “progress” understood in this territory? For whom is it intended? How has Bolivian society, particularly in Santa Cruz, been transformed in recent decades? Why speak of authoritarianism? Seeking collective answers to these questions—and opening the door to new ones—we met in July at a roundtable during the Congress of the Association of Bolivian Studies (AEB). This text summarises the reflections that emerged and presents a set of ongoing research projects.

By Claudia Cuellar

#WhatWillWeBeIn2026: World Cup, Forced Disappearances and 20 Years of the War on Drugs in Mexico

In Perspective David Barrios Rodríguez explores the dual countdowns in Mexico: the FIFA World Cup and marking 20 years since the beginning of the War on Drugs - a paradoxical coexistence of festivity and social and political crisis.

By David Barrios Rodríguez

Pierre Dardot: "We Are Witnessing a Civil War Against Collective Rights"

Interview In an era of rising global authoritarianism, what is the role of the state? How do violence and governmentality intersect? Can the commons still hold emancipatory potential?" These were some of the pressing questions explored in a lively exchange with philosopher Pierre Dardot.

By Gustavo Robles

Post-Fascism for Adolescents

In Perspective Radical right-wing movements have emerged as new interlocutors for many adolescents unwilling to embrace the passivity offered by the neoliberal and increasingly apocalyptic narratives. These political groups promise quick exits from poverty and suffering, specifically to young men.

By Paülah Nurit Shabel

From (Individual) Fears to (Collective) Cares

Theory & Research Neoliberalism has dismantled the social structures that offered security and orientation to life. The far right successfully channels the resulting fears and anxieties towards purist, social Darwinist fantasies. Politics of care stands as a defiant response to that. In an era defined by uncertainty and precarity, care emerges as survival, resistance, and imagination. Care is a counter-normative project: sustaining and (re)generating social life while embracing contradiction and resisting the demands for purity.

By Firoozeh Farvardin and Gustavo Robles