Chavez's Children

Most publications on the political situation in Venezuela are journalistic and lack a scientific, and particularly sociological, approach. Chavez’s Children: Ideology, Education, and Society in Latin America is the first sociological work on the ideological system in Venezuela. This book deals with the deep social structures of Chávez’s power, its origins, its evolution in history, its dynamics, its institutionalizations, and its relationships with the educational system. By using an empirical analysis of Bolivarian schools and fieldwork on over 300 students, Chavez’s Children reconstructs the history of revolutionary movements in Venezuela and advocates a model of analysis on Latin American socio-revolutionary phenomena. This English language edition will be a great opportunity for Latin American experts as well as interested readers to uncover the system behind Chávez’s power.

Manuel Anselmi has produced an insightful analysis of ideology under the Chávez government, paying particular attention to its implementation in the Bolivarian education system. . . .Overall, Anselmi succeeds in identifying the central components of Hugo Chávez's ideological project, and in highlighting the great importance attached to education by the current government., Chavez’s Children is a serious examination of the evolution of the myth and ideals associated with the Great Liberator Simon Bolivar (1783-1830) from his original federalist and pro-republican ideas to the present Bolivarian movement of Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez Frias. With Chavez’s unceasing help, the historical Bolivar has been adapted to fit Chavez’s creed of anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and militaristic socialism and made the symbol of a new quest for Latin American unity. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in learning about the mechanics of the Bolivarian movement in Venezuela and how these ideas are being passed down, or better said, imposed, on a future generation of Chavistas., Anselmi’s research reveals an evolving educational system at odds with our stereotypes, both positive and negative ones, about contemporary Venezuela in the Hugo Chávez era.  Schools in Venezuela promote pragmatic goals as well as 'Bolivarian values' having diverse roots in the country’s history and both Marxist and Enlightenment thought. The response of the country’s children confirms neither the alarms sounded by ardent critics or the hopes of its most fervent defenders.

Manuel Anselmi is an assistant professor of political sociology at the University of Perugia and professor of political science at the University of Viterbo (Italy). He graduated in philosophy at the University of Rome "La Sapienza," PhD in Social Science and Science of Education at University of Cassino. He is a columnist at the magazine of the Italian think tank Institute for International Affairs and he collaborates with the daily Ilfattoquotidiano.