In the twentieth century, illiteracy and its elimination were
political issues important enough to figure in the fall of
governments (as in Brazil in 1964), the building of nations (in
newly independent African countries in the 1970s), and the
construction of a revolutionary order (Nicaragua in 1980). This
political biography of Paulo Freire (1921-97), who played a crucial
role in shaping international literacy education, also presents a
thoughtful examination of the volatile politics of literacy during
the Cold War.
A native of Brazil's impoverished northeast, Freire developed adult
literacy training techniques that involved consciousness-raising,
encouraging peasants and newly urban peoples to see themselves as
active citizens who could transform their own lives. Freire's work
for state and national government agencies in Brazil in the early
1960s eventually aroused the suspicion of the Brazilian military,
as well as of U.S. government aid programs. Political pressures led
to Freire's brief imprisonment, following the military coup of
1964, and then to more than a decade and a half in exile. During
this period, Freire continued his work in Chile, Nicaragua, and
postindependence African countries, as well as in Geneva with the
World Council of Churches and in the United States at Harvard
University.
Andrew J. Kirkendall's evenhanded appraisal of Freire's pioneering
life and work, which remains influential today, gives new
perspectives on the history of the Cold War, the meanings of
radicalism, and the evolution of the Left in Latin America.