University Times

A University of Pittsburgh Press-published book has received the 2003 Bryce Wood Book Award from Pitt’s Latin American Studies Association.

“Empowering Women: Land and Property Rights in Latin America,” by Carmen Diana Deere and Magdalena Leon, was named Bryce Wood winner last month. The book is a volume in the Pitt Latin American Series and was published in 2001.

The book explores the gap that still exists in Latin America between the property rights of married women and actual ownership of land. In their 12-county study, the authors argue that property ownership is directly related to women’s bargaining power within the household and community, point out challenges resulting from recent gender-progressive legislation and identify other areas for reform.

Deere is professor of economics and director of the Center for Latin American, Caribbean and Latino Studies at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Leon is a professor on the faculty of humanities and social sciences at the National University of Colombia.

“Empowering Women” also won the New England Council of Latin American Studies Best Book Prize and the Latino Literary Hall of Fame Award for best history book in the non-fiction/English language category.