Author Archives: Colin M. Snider

About Colin M. Snider

I have a Ph.D. in history, specializing in Latin American History and Comparative Indigenous History. My dissertation focused on Brazil. Beyond Latin America generally, I'm particularly interested in class identities, military politics, human rights, labor, education, music, and nation. I can be found on Twitter at @ColinMSnider.

The Complex Web of Environmental Devastation in the Amazon

Posted on November 28, 2016

The New York Times recently ran a story on the issue of piracy on the Amazon River. It offers glimpses into a lot of issues pertinent to the region and to Brazil more generally – ongoing poverty and inequality, and its role in … Continue reading →

Posted in Brazil, Environmental Issues in the Americas, Inequalities in the Americas

Very Quick Thoughts on Castro

Posted on November 26, 2016

Fidel Castro has died at 90 years of age. Obviously, a lot will be said in the coming days. Some will make him out to be one of the greatest monsters of history (with inevitable claims that he was “Cuba’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Cuba, Deaths

What Presidents Do Post-Coup

Posted on September 6, 2016

Greg has an interesting post up on the path of Latin American presidents who’ve been removed from office in recent times – Manuel Zelaya in Honduras in 2009 through a coup; Paraguay’s Fernando Lugo through a highly dubious application of … Continue reading →

Posted in Brazil, Honduras, Latin American Politics, Mexico, Paraguay | 1 Comment

Today in “Terrible Historical Analogies” (or, Brazil in 2016 is not Iraq in 2005)

Posted on September 5, 2016

The impeachment of Dilma Roussef in Brazil has led to no small amount of writing over where Brazil heads next. Some of those pieces are thought-provoking as they shed light on the current situation in Brazil as well as outlining quite … Continue reading →

Posted in Brazil

A Final, Farcical Footnote to Impeachment in Brazil

Posted on September 3, 2016

As many already know, Brazil’s Senate formally removed president Dilma Rousseff from office this week, voting 61-20 in favor of removal (59 votes were needed). The process had been a farce since the moment Eduardo Cunha, leader of the PMDB … Continue reading →

Posted in Brazil, Corruption, Impeachment, Latin American Politics

Some Quick Thoughts on the Latest Polls in Brazil

Posted on July 18, 2016

Three months out from the impeachment of president Dilma Rousseff and the imposition of Michel Temer as acting President, Datafolha recently published new polling data that gives some interesting insights into how the impeachment and the Temer administration are resonating … Continue reading →

Posted in Brazil, Democracy in the Americas, Latin American Politics

The Lived Effects of the Rio Olympics

Posted on July 17, 2016

Recently, The Guardian has been running an excellent series on the lived experiences of the Olympics from a usually-ignored perspective: that of those living in favelas. Much of the concern over the upcoming Rio Olympics has fallen on Zika (despite August being … Continue reading →

Posted in Brazil, Favelas, Inequalities in the Americas, Rio de Janeiro, Urban Landscapes