Tom Barry views the crises that confront Mexico as alarming evidence of the incapacity of today's neoliberal and free trade policies to foster broad economic development. He explains that such strategies have resulted in reduced food security, environmental destruction, increased rural-urban polarization, depopulation of peasant communities, and social and political instability. This book offers personal interviews, investigative research, and analysis that goes to the heart of the development challenge faced by Mexico and other Latin American nations. Behind the headlines on Chiapas exists a complex, longstanding set of problems, perhaps the most important of which is land use, agricultural productivity, and the lives of indigenous peasants. Barry, who has produced several policy-oriented works on contemporary Mexico, provides a thoughtful and objective interpretation of one of Mexico's most serious economic issues, subsistence agriculture. He examines the impact of the domestic and international market and shows how problems in subsistence farming sparked political violence in southern Mexico. His balanced appraisal, which analyzes the pros and cons of economic liberalism, identifies qualities contributing to an improved agricultural system. This clearly written work sheds much light on current difficulties and should be read by anyone interested in understanding Mexico's crucial, underlying problems. For academic and larger public libraries.?Roderic A. Camp, Latin American Ctr., Tulane Univ., New Orleans Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. Free trade and Mexico's farm crisis are the topic of a title which critiques one of the key economic issues facing the country today. From the impact of domestic and international market changes to politics and social issues on the rise in the country, this argues that free trade's inability to foster economic development is the real culprit preventing Mexico's advancement. -- Midwest Book Review Tom Barry is the founder of the Interhemispheric Resource Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Used Book in Good Condition