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Michelle Saint-Germain and Cynthia Metoyer have written the best comparative study available in English on the causes and impact of women's participation in Central America--and in Latin America as a whole. During the 1980s and 1990s, the number of women elected to national legislatures in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua grew, exceeding global and Latin American averages. The authors conclude that there are three major reasons for this growth: the regional crisis caused by the civil wars of the 1980s; the opportunities for women to gain political experience due to the rapid expansion of civil society during this period; and the adoption of a gender consciousness, improving the viability of women candidates and influencing their agendas.
The book opens with useful short histories of the five countries, beginning with the colonial period that created societies highly unequal in class and race terms, and macho in their treatment of women. The authors also identify important differences among the cases, from the more middle-class, wealthy, and egalitarian Costa Rica to Guatemala with its large indigenous population. Using statistical and interview data, Saint-Germain and Metoyer ask whether their data support any of the current theories about how to elect more women: the role of electoral systems, the role of political parties and women's sections, the level of economic development, and cultural factors, including pervasive sexism and religiosity. The diversity of women's paths to political office was striking, ranging from participation in student and grassroots organizations to...