ABSTRACT
The main argument in this chapter is that the neoliberal policies followed by almost all Latin American countries since the 1980s are further deepening the exclusionary character of the region’s rural modernization and jeopardizing the livelihoods of the peasantry. The chapter begins by discussing the legacy of Latin America’s agrarian reforms. It then examines the changes in the countryside ushered in by government policies supportive of the modernization of capitalist farms within the context of globalization. The influence of these transformations on rural livelihoods and the peasantry’s future prospects under neoliberalism are subsequently analysed. A new rurality is being shaped which is characterized by a more heterogeneous agrarian structure, more complex and fluid social relations, greater significance of non-agricultural and off-farm activities, and the emergence of new social actors, especially women and indigenous people. Finally, the character of the new peasant movement, which is challenging the imposition of neoliberal policies in the countryside, is highlighted.
