CIPR | Center For Inter-American Policy & Research

Tulane University

David Smilde

Charles A. and Leo M. Favrot Professor of Human Relations and Senior Associate Fellow at CIPR

Contact Info
dsmilde@tulane.edu

Department Affiliation
Sociology

Degrees
  • B.A., Calvin College, Sociology & Philosophy, 1989
  • M.A., University of Chicago, Sociology, 1994
  • Ph.D., University of Chicago, Sociology, 1994
Academic Experience
  • Charles A. and Leo M. Favrot Professor of Human Relations, 2016-
  • Professor, Tulane University, 2014-
  • Associate Professor, University of Georgia, 2001-2014
Related Experience
  • Editor-in-Chief, Qualitative Sociology, 2011-2015
  • Senior Fellow, Washington Office on Latin America, 2011-
  • Chair, Section on Venezuelan Studies, Latin American Studies Association, 2010-2012
  • Executive Council, University of Georgia Latin American and Caribbean Studies Institute, 2008-2012
Distinctions
  • Finalist, Clifford Geertz Book Award, 2009
  • Winner, Distinguished Book Award, Section on the Sociology of Religion, American Sociological Association, 2009
  • Honorable Mention, Distinguished Article Award, Section on Collective Behavior and Social Movements, American Sociological Association, 2006
Language:
  • Spanish
Overseas Experience
  • Venezuela

Research & Teaching Specializations religion, politics and protest in Venezuela, qualitative methods

Selected Publications
  • 2013. “Strategic Posture Review: Venezuela.” In World Politics Review. September 17.
  • 2012. Religion on the Edge: Decentering and Recentering the Sociology of Religion. With Courtney Bender, Wendy Cadge, Peggy Levitt. New York: Oxford University Press.
  • 2011. Venezuela‘€™s Bolivarian Democracy: Participation, Politics and Culture in Venezuela‘€™s Bolivarian Democracy. Editor with Daniel Hellinger. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
  • 2007. Reason to Believe: Cultural Agency in Latin American Evangelicalism. Berkeley: University of California Press.
  • 2002. Protesta y Cultura en Venezuela: Los Marcos de Acción Colectiva en 1999. With Margarita López Maya and Keta Stephany. Caracas: FACES-UCV/CENDES/FONACIT.

Latin American-Related Courses Taught in Last 2 years: SOCI-3220-01: Social Theory, SOCI-6012-01: Latin American Social Mobilization

Full CV or Website
Curriculum Vitae
Departmental Biography

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    Upcoming Events

    Latin American Writers Series: Luis Negron

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    Ecuadorian writer and Tulane Visiting Scholar Gabriela Aleman interviews Puerto Rican writer Luis Negron about his life, interests, and influences. Their discussion will be followed by an open Q&A and an informal reception. Note: This event will be held in Spanish.

    About the Latin American Writers Series

    This series brings together Latin America’s most representative creative voices and the editorial entrepreneurs that publish them. By way of interviews conducted by renowned Ecuadorian writer Gabriela Alemán and presentations of various editorial missions, the guests will shed light on a literary world shaped by the contemporary issues of the continent. Moving forward, their conversations will comprise the centerpiece of a digital archive that introduces their ideas to a global audience.

    Este serie reúne a los autores más representativos de la escritura continental y los editores que los publican. A través de entrevistas con la reconocida escritora ecuatoriana Gabriela Alemán y presentaciones de proyectos editoriales, los invitados explorarán los vínculos entre el mundo literario y la realidad continental. Sus conversaciones se convertirán después en el eje de un archivo digital que busca llevar estas ideas a un público global.

    About the author

    Luis Negron was born in Puerto Rico and is a writer, film critic, and bookseller. The English translation of his short-story collection Mundo Cruel, a work originally published in Spanish in 2010, won the 2014 Lambda Literary Award. Negron has also written a brief collection of chronicles, Los tres golpes (2016), and served as the editor of Los otros cuerpos: Antología de temática gay, lésbica, y queer desde Puerto Rico y su diáspora (2007). His film reviews have appeared in periodicals like Boston’s La semana (Boston) and Puerto Rico’s Claridad and El poeta.

    Latin American Writers Series: Gabriela Wiener

    View Full Event Description

    Tulane Visiting Scholar and Ecuadorian author Gabriela Aleman interviews Peruvian writer Gabriela Wiener about her life, interests, and influences. Their discussion will be followed by an open Q&A and informal reception. Note: This event will be held in Spanish

    About the Latin American Writers Series

    This series brings together Latin Americas most representative creative voices and the editorial entrepreneurs that publish them. By way of interviews conducted by renowned Ecuadorian writer Gabriela Alemán and presentations of various editorial missions, the guests will shed light on a literary world shaped by the contemporary issues of the continent. Moving forward, their conversations will comprise the centerpiece of a digital archive that introduces their ideas to a global audience.

    Este serie reune a los autores más representativos de la escritura continental y los editores que los publican. A través de entrevistas con la reconocida escritora ecuatoriana Gabriela Alemán y presentaciones de proyectos editoriales, los invitados explorarán los vínculos entre el mundo literario y la realidad continental. Sus conversaciones se convertirán después en el eje de un archivo digital que busca llevar estas ideas a un público global.

    About the author

    Gabriela Wiener, born in Lima, has published multiple collections of chronicles, including Sexografias (2008), Llamada Perdida (2009), Nueve Lunas (2015), and Dicen de mí (2017), as well as one of poetry, Ejercicios para el endurecimiento del espíritu (2014). The English translation of her first book, Sexographies, was released in 2018. Her writing also regularly appears in periodicals in Europe, South America, and the United States. In 2018, Wiener shared the IPYS Premio Nacional de Periodismo in Peru with Diego Salazar for Una historia de terror en París a piece exposing the sex crimes of poet Reynaldo Naranjo.

    Latin American Writers Series: Andrea Palet (Editorial Laurel)

    View Full Event Description

    Editorial Director Andrea Palet presents the history, philosophy, and ongoing projects of Editorial Laurel, a publishing house founded in Santiago, Chile in 2014. Her presentation sheds light on the changing landscape of literature in the Americas today. It will be followed by a reception. This event will be held in Spanish.

    About the Latin American Writers Series

    This series brings together Latin America’s most representative creative voices and the editorial entrepreneurs that publish them. By way of interviews conducted by renowned Ecuadorian writer Gabriela Alemán and presentations of various editorial missions, the guests will shed light on a literary world shaped by the contemporary issues of the continent. Moving forward, their conversations will comprise the centerpiece of a digital archive that introduces their ideas to a global audience.

    Este serie reúne a los autores más representativos de la escritura continental y los editores que los publican. A través de entrevistas con la reconocida escritora ecuatoriana Gabriela Alemán y presentaciones de proyectos editoriales, los invitados explorarán los vínculos entre el mundo literario y la realidad continental. Sus conversaciones se convertirán después en el eje de un archivo digital que busca llevar estas ideas a un público global.

    About the Speaker

    Andrea Palet is the founding editorial director of Editorial Laurel, established in 2014 in Santiago, Chile. Under her leadership, the house has released the works of more than 20 novelists, essayists, and chroniclers. Paleta also oversees the Master of Editing program at the Universidad de Diego Portales. A collection of her columns, Leo y olvido, was released in 2018 by Ediciones Bastante.

    Latin American Writers Series: Power Paola

    View Full Event Description

    Ecuadorian author and Tulane Visiting scholar Gabriela Alemán interviews Colombian writer and visual artist Power Paola about her life, interests, and influences. Their discussion will be followed by an open Q&A and an informal reception. This event will be held in Spanish.

    About the Latin American Writers Series

    This series brings together Latin America’s most representative creative voices and the editorial entrepreneurs that publish them. By way of interviews conducted by renowned Ecuadorian writer Gabriela Alemán and presentations of various editorial missions, the guests will shed light on a literary world shaped by the contemporary issues of the continent. Moving forward, their conversations will comprise the centerpiece of a digital archive that introduces their ideas to a global audience.

    Este serie reúne a los autores más representativos de la escritura continental y los editores que los publican. A través de entrevistas con la reconocida escritora ecuatoriana Gabriela Alemán y presentaciones de proyectos editoriales, los invitados explorarán los vínculos entre el mundo literario y la realidad continental. Sus conversaciones se convertirán después en el eje de un archivo digital que busca llevar estas ideas a un público global.

    About the Author

    Powerpaola was born Paola Andrea Gaviria Silguero in Cali, Colombia. Writer, visual artist, and filmmaker, she has published the graphic novels Virus Tropical (2011), Por Dentro_ (2012), _Diario_ (2013), _qp_ (2014), _Todo va a estar bien (2015), and Nos vamos (2016). She also collaborated on the film adaptation of Virus Tropical, which won the 2019 Quirino award for Best Ibero-American Animation Feature Film. Her artwork has been exhibited in museums and galleries in Europe, Austrialia, and the Americas.

    Latin American Writers Series: Martín Fernández (Casa Editorial HUM/Estuario Editora)

    View Full Event Description

    Martín Fernández, editorial director of Casa Editorial HUM and Estuario Editora in Montevideo, Uruguay, presents the houses’ histories, missions, and ongoing projects. His presentation sheds light on the changing landscape of literature in the Americas today. It will be followed by an informal reception. Note: This event will be held in Spanish.

    About the Latin American Writers Series

    This series brings together Latin America’s most representative creative voices and the editorial entrepreneurs that publish them. By way of interviews conducted by renowned Ecuadorian writer Gabriela Alemán and presentations of various editorial missions, the guests will shed light on a literary world shaped by the contemporary issues of the continent. Moving forward, their conversations will comprise the centerpiece of a digital archive that introduces their ideas to a global audience.

    Este serie reúne a los autores más representativos de la escritura continental y los editores que los publican. A través de entrevistas con la reconocida escritora ecuatoriana Gabriela Alemán y presentaciones de proyectos editoriales, los invitados explorarán los vínculos entre el mundo literario y la realidad continental. Sus conversaciones se convertirán después en el eje de un archivo digital que busca llevar estas ideas a un público global.

    About the Speaker

    Martin Fernández is the Editorial director of the publishing houses Casa Editorial HUM and Estuario Editora in Montevideo, Uruguay. He founded HUM in 2007 after leaving his previous project, the underground publishing house ArteFato, which he co-directed between 2004 and 2007. HUM and Estuario publish contemporary Uruguayan literature in high-quality, aesthetically distinct editions. They have collectively released more than 400 titles.

    Latin American Writers Series: Alberto Barrera Tyszka

    View Full Event Description

    Ecuadorian writer and Tulane Visiting Scholar Gabriela Alemán interviews Venezuelan writer Alberto Barrera Tyszka about his life, interests, and influences. Their discussion will be followed by an open Q&A and an informal reception. This event will be held in Spanish.

    About the Latin American Writers Series

    This series brings together Latin America’s most representative creative voices and the editorial entrepreneurs that publish them. By way of interviews conducted by renowned Ecuadorian writer Gabriela Alemán and presentations of various editorial missions, the guests will shed light on a literary world shaped by the contemporary issues of the continent. Moving forward, their conversations will comprise the centerpiece of a digital archive that introduces their ideas to a global audience.

    Este serie reúne a los autores más representativos de la escritura continental y los editores que los publican. A través de entrevistas con la reconocida escritora ecuatoriana Gabriela Alemán y presentaciones de proyectos editoriales, los invitados explorarán los vínculos entre el mundo literario y la realidad continental. Sus conversaciones se convertirán después en el eje de un archivo digital que busca llevar estas ideas a un público global.

    About the Author

    Born in Caracas, Alberto Barrera Tyszka has published over a dozen works of poetry, short story, chronicle, novel, and biography. His most recent publications include the novels Patria o Muerte (2015) and Rating (2011), the poetic anthology La inquietud (2013), the collection of chronicles Un país a la semana (2013), and the short story collection Crímenes (2009). In 2005, he collaborated with Cristina Marcano to write the definitive biography of Hugo Chávez, Hugo Chávez sin uniforme: una historia personal (2005). Patria o muerte won the 2015 Premio Tusquets de Novela, and his novel La enfermedad, translated into English as The Sickness (2010), received the 2006 Herralde Award. Barrera also writes for television and has scripted soap operas for Venezuelan, Mexican, Colombian, and Argentinian networks.