Table of Contents

Part 1 Introduction Chapter 2 The Crisis of 2001 and Argentine Democracy Part 3 Causes of the Crisis Chapter 4 The Democratic Process in Argentina Chapter 5 Police, Politics, and Society in the Province of Buenos Aires Chapter 6 The Costs of the Convertability Plan: The Economic and Social Consequences of Financial Hegemony Part 7 Citizen Responses Chapter 8 The Piquetero Movement in Greater Buenos Aires: Political Protests by the Unemployed Poor During the Crisis Chapter 9 Political Mobilization in Neighborhood Assemblies: The Cases of Villa Crespo and Palermo Chapter 10 Middle Class Use of Barter Clubs: A Real Alternative or Just Survival? Part 11 The Forces of Order During the Crisis Chapter 12 Crisis, Democracy, and the Military in Argentina Chapter 13 The Gendermarie's Response to Social Protest in Argentina Part 14 State and Foreign Responses Chapter 15 In the Name of the People: The Possibilities and Limits of a Government Relying on Public Opinion Chapter 16 The Argentine Political Crisis and Necessary Institutional Reform Chapter 17 Will Foreign Allies Help? Argentina's Relationship with Brazil and the United States

About the Author

Edward Epstein is professor of political science at the University of Utah. David Pion-Berlin is professor of political science at the University of California, Riverside.

Reviews

This book represents the first comprehensive account of Argentina's grave 2001 crisis. Epstein and Pion-Berlin have brought together an impressive group of scholars to provide a path-breaking analysis of the origins and dynamics of the crisis, as well as the survival of Argentina's democracy. This book should be read by anyone seeking an authoritative analysis of the behavior of social actors as they respond to political and economic crises. In addition, the insights that this book provides into the role of the police and the military in the face of social protest in a democracy in crisis are exceptional.
*Harold A. Trinkunas, Naval Postgraduate School*

Broken Promises? is a timely inquiry into every dimension of the Argentine crisis and its aftermath. Written by known scholars and close observers of the Argentine economy, politics, and society, this book should find its way into both undergraduate and graduate classrooms.
*Maria Lorena Cook, Cornell University*

Edward Epstein and David Pion-Berlin’s Broken Promises is a wide-ranging exploration of the forces, policies and organizational actors involved in the profound economic and political crisis that rocked Argentine politics in 2001-2002 and beyond. With contributions from noted Argentine and U.S. scholars, the book encompasses perspectives ranging from philosophical ponderings on neoliberalism and questions of representation, to serious analyses of how Argentina’s economic policy went astray, and very detailed, in-depth studies of key players from Argentine society and state, as well as from the international community. The overall composite provides not only many of the pieces necessary to understand the causes, evolution, and aftermath of the crisis itself, but also to understand the Argentina that is emerging from that crisis. This will be essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of contemporary Argentine democracy.
*Deborah Norden, Whittier College*