María Emilsen Angulo, mayor of Tumaco, Colombia. (Image: Didier Alejandro Cuero Marquinez)

María Emilsen Angulo, mayor of Tumaco, Colombia. (Image: Didier Alejandro Cuero Marquinez)

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Where Are Latin America’s Leaders? Look to Its Cities.

By AQ Online

The most effective leaders during the pandemic have been mayors. The new issue of Americas Quarterly examines why.

This article is part of AQ’s issue on Latin American mayors. | Leer en español. | Ler em português.

Exactly 50 years ago, while accepting his Nobel Prize for literature in Stockholm, the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda concluded his speech on a hopeful, even utopian note. “Only with a burning patience can we conquer the splendid city which will give light, justice, and dignity to all mankind,” Neruda said. “In this way, the song will not have been sung in vain.”

Such soaring language seems entirely out of place in today’s Americas, as many countries continue to struggle with the pandemic and a halting, unequal economic recovery. Many of the region’s presidents seem distracted by ideological wars, real or imagined, or simply incapable of rising to the moment. One could be forgiven for concluding that none of today’s politicians are suited for the numerous post-COVID challenges ahead.

But that conclusion would be wrong. In this report, we take a closer look at Latin America’s mayors, many of whom are solving real-life problems while nudging the region down the arduous road to recovery.

Read this article on the Americas Quarterly website. | Subscribe to AQ.

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