Peasants As Activists

ocial scientists have long characterized peasants as politically S passive and uninvolved in day to day political activity.Latin American peasants in particular have been singled out as politically nonparticipant.Fur example, anthropologists Diaz and Potter (1967: 159) state that "In Latin America . . . the striking thing is the relative absence of a sense of association, which makes it extremely difficult for peasants in this area to organize to meet the challenges of the modern world."Similarly, sociologists Landsberger and Hewitt (1970: 559) emphasize that "It is unfortunate but true that peasant organizations have been difficult to establish in Latin America."Political scientists