These powerful words spoken by Pope John Paul II automatically give credence to the possibility that globalization can be destabilizing force. The words seem especially significant given John Paul’s historically positive view of globalization. After stumbling upon this quote I find myself genuinely interested in finding out what exactly globalization does that is so detrimental to periphery nations. I enter into this inquiry not knowing what my conclusions will be, for I kno

The 1980’s were not only the beginning of the “third wave” of globalization, but the beginning of the Latin American Debt crisis (a topic I will not discuss) as well. The debt crisis had a crippling effect on the regional economies and caused a significant increase in poverty. Additionally, “Between 1980 and 1989 there was an increase of almost 40 million in the number of Latin Americans living on less than $2 per day”(Meyer 2000). The case of Peru during this period illustrates the severity of the drop in wages. In 1982 the average Peruvian salary was 225,000 intis per month. By 1990 the monthly salary had fallen to 50,000 intis (Stokes). By 1990, 41% of Latin America’s inhabitants were living in poverty. By 1997 the poverty rate had receded back to the 1980 level of 35%; Therefore, although a recovery was made, it was merely that- a recovery. Unfortunately, even this moderate level of progress proved to be short lived. Over the last 4 years, the region has seen the poverty level hold steady and in some cases even rise (Raghavan).

Although the forces of globalization have been affecting Latin America for well over 50 years, my report will focus on the last twenty years (commonly referred to as “The Third Wave of Globalization”), paying special attention to the last decade. During this period, the affects of globalization have become more marked and the detriments associated with it are becoming clearer. The supposed benefactors of globalization, the impoverished, are discovering that the vast majority of them are being excluded from the benefits associated with globalization. The problem of inequality is a worldwide; Latin America, however, presents a special case. “Latin America’s inequality is the most extreme in the world and has been so for longer than statistics exist”(Meyer 2000). Latin America is not a poor region relative to the rest of the world but it does contain an astonishing number of poor people. In Costa Rica for example, the upper fifth of the population holds about eleven times as much wealth as the bottom fifth. Costa Rica, however, is an anomaly. Most countries in the region have between a 15:1 and 20:1 ratio in this category. Comparatively, the United States exhibits a ratio of about 7:1.

Another important factor in the persistence of inequality is the size of the informal labor sector of the economy. The informal sector is made up of street vendors, drug dealers, day laborers, and other occupations that do not pay regular wages. “ECLAC (Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean) estimates, for every 100 new jobs created between 1990 and 1997, 69 were [the informal] sector, which already accounts for 47% of urban occupations in the region, a situation that explains the current stagnation in labor productivity levels”(Raghavan). Carlos Vila’s article in the NACLA Report on the Americas estimates even higher rates for the informal economy: “Nine out of every ten new jobs created in the 1990s is in the informal sector--an acceleration of a trend that began in the second half of the previous decade when 80% of all new jobs were informal. Employment is now concentrated in low-productivity activities and is increasingly unstable” This sector of the economy is inherently low paying because the work is unsteady and unskilled.

w there are many opposing views on the subject. My only goal is to point out exactly how globalization has contributed to the massive inequality in the region we have been studying.

As unequal as Latin America is from and income standpoint, it is just as unequal from a gender standpoint as well. Most Latin American women in the lower classes do not work in the formal economy. The women who do work are generally in the middle and upper classes. Maria Elena Moyano’s autobiography furthers the stereotype of the stay at home woman. She admitted to not wanting to finish college in favor of staying at home with her children.

Some topics in this essay:
Latin America, Latin America’s, America”Vilas Unfortunately, Ms Reddy, Latin Americans, GDP Unfortunately, , Shining Path, Latin American, Paul II, latin america, informal sector, latin america’s, trade barriers, latin american, globalization shown, sector economy, john paul ii, debt crisis, labor force, low wages, pope john paul, multi national corporations, demand unskilled labor, benefits associated globalization,