ABSTRACT
This chapter examines civil society in Latin America and the social movements and other interests that inhabit this independent 'public sphere' outside the state and use it to addresses the societal problems. The concept of civil society is important because in last decades of twentieth century many diverse social movements emerged in Latin America, from human rights organizations to Christian base communities, self-help groups giving voice to poor, and charities. Under democracy, social movements in Latin America have played an important role in mobilizing for change, and in many cases contributed significantly to a shift to the left in the region. About 50 million people within 400 linguistic groups maintain indigenous lifestyles in Latin America, which are often communitarian and rural, and in some countries they form the majority. In recent years, students of Latin American politics have shown a growing interest in the impact of television, which it has been argued represents a potential threat to political parties.
