Book. Dollarizations. National Histories of a Global Currency
Authors: Ariel Wilkis. [Editor]
Allison Truitt. Andrés Chiriboga Tejada. Chris Vasantkumar. David Pedersen. Federico Neiburg. Flore Pavy. Ia Eradze. Isabel Ramos. Jorge E. Cuéllar. Luis Emilio Martínez. Ariel Wilkis. Magdalena Villarreal. Mariana Luzzi. Omar Vázquez Heredia. Osnaide Izquierdo Quintana. Stefan Mikuska. [Chapter Authors]
The role of the US dollar in consolidating US hegemony since the mid-20th century is well known, but its transformation into a “global currency” remains a phenomenon that needs to be understood. This book is the first transnational study to analyze how this process unfolded in ten countries of the Global South. The aim here is to understand how dollarization became a central chapter in the history and present of Argentina, Venezuela, Ecuador, Cuba, Haiti, El Salvador, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Vietnam, and Georgia. In these national contexts, the dollar's prominence has become paramount in society and politics. Furthermore, this prominence serves as a lens through which to understand broader phenomena that have marked the last half-century: decolonization processes, the collapse of the Soviet bloc and post-socialist transitions, hyperinflationary processes and major social crises, the financialization of the economy and the weakening of welfare states, among others. The stories told in this volume help to expand our imagination about the role of global currencies and help us understand how the countries that issue and back them economically and militarily play, through them, a crucial role in the construction of political authorities, in the dynamics of social stratification, and in the elaboration of collective and personal imaginaries.
Research Calls Collection.
ISBN 978-987-813-880-0
CLACSO. CALLAS.
Buenos Aires. Guadalajara.
October 2024
