Throughout this course I’ve learned that the relationship between Latin America and the United States is positive. The United States is known for their leadership with helping other countries rather than destroying them. Mexico almost always comes to the United States for help causing them to have a close relationship. There are two themes that stay consistent with US and Latin American relations over the past two centuries; first, the US desired to protect and expand their economic and strategic interest in the region and second US leaders justified US policy by portraying the region as hopeless and desperate for protection to save people from barbarism. According to Mark T. Berger, the actions of the US sustained and extended US hegemony
When the Europeans first arrived in Latin America, they didn’t realize the immensity of their actions. As history has proven, the Europeans have imposed many things on the Latin American territory have had a long, devastating effect on the indigenous people. In the centuries after 1492, Europeans would control much of South America and impose a foreign culture upon the already established civilizations that existed before their arrival. These imposed ideas left the continent weak and resulted in the loss of culture, the dependence on European countries, and a long standing ethnic tension between natives and settlers which is evident even to this day. The indigenous people of South America, which
American attitudes towards Latin America can be summed up as an extension of larger global directives, and the exclusion of foreign powers in the region. This was highlighted especially during the Cold War as US involvement was essentially in competition with the USSR. Latin America was therefore a mere pawn in the larger context of US-Soviet competition for global dominance. The actions and methods used are also characterized by the lack of an international authority, or an atmosphere of inter-state anarchy, which shaped their calculations in the endeavor to increase their influence over Latin America. When one analyzes the situation, it seems only rational that the United States treated its southern neighbors so, due to the geographical
Latin America is a continent that is constantly struggling between governmental abuse and oppression of its citizens. In Latin America, it is very common for non –democratic systems to be enforced. During recent years, the continent has experienced a governmental shift from an absolute to a more democratic system. This era is called the democratic third wave, which brought about democratic like tendencies to Latin America. Many factors such as corruption, poverty, and inequality pushed the people to favor this new democratic system. The abuse of power is also very common, and the citizen’s unrest is highly noted. Most citizens are in favor of doing away with the old system of government, and establishing a new efficient political system.
What would it take for one country and their people to do whatever is necessary to attain freedom and rules that would pertain to a better future? Throughout the revolutions, these questions have been answered, but fight after fight is the most noticeable action as seen so far in the chapter. This leads to the question, how would a new government cause issues, instead of helping? Latin America faced many issues dealing with independence and struggled in many areas and needed to develop a new strategy, so the issues with independence can be resolved. However, the development of the nation did not occur well due to the structure of their new government and the people wanted them to know that the old system was what they were looking for and the treatment of the people was not stable.
The progress of Latin America economically has made differences for the better or worse for several countries. In Central and South America, there are resources, industries, and agriculture that has been made gradually through the years. However, before the economic Latin America many know today, other civilizations lived first. In Central America, the Maya, Aztec, and Olmec lived there. (Document 1) The Mayans were known to live in the Yucatan Peninsula, while the Aztec lived in Tenochtitlan, and the Olmec in present day Veracruz and Tabasco. (Document 1) In South America, lived the Inca. The Inca lived in Peru, Chile. (Document 1) Aside from earlier civilizations, there are also four zones of climate. (Document 3) These types of climates are Tierra Helada (Frozen Land), Tierra Fria (Cold Land), Tierra Templada (Temperate Land), Tierra Caliente (Hot Land). All of these have different livestock and crops depending on the climate.
The Mexican government were seen as not knowing what they were doing, especially after them gaining independence from Spain in 1821 because the Mexican leaders lacked experience in politics, on top of being a nation that had deep-rooted connection to Spain’s ideologies rather than that of their own. While the United States thrived from the time of its colonial origins, for Mexico to modernize after gaining independence meant breaking its structures, destroying old institutions and building new ones whilst juggling an aggressive neighbor who eagerly sought more land. By putting into context the origin of the soon-to-be-at-war states, it is easier to comprehend why holding aggressive nationalistic behavior was the norm with the United States when they decided to take on its southern neighbor as the state’s population started to expand increasingly. The origins of the United States shows the attitude of “us versus them”, where Mexico’s top officials and administration were seen as incompetent and trickled down to its
Generally, the US foreign policy concerning Latin America was of course for the US' own benefit. If the person in power was trying to nationalize their country's economy, the US accused them of communism and proceeded to push them out, unofficially, under the pretext of national security.
The United States and the Soviet Union competed against each other during the Cold War in the second half of the 20th Century like a chess game, with the world as their chessboard and countries as pawns in their game. For the Russians, a critical part of the chessboard was Cuba and Latin America. The Russians believed that if they could align themselves with countries in the western hemisphere, America’s “backyard”, it would help the Soviet Union counter the strong political influence and military presence America had in Europe, which made the Russians feel threatened. The Soviet Union tried to align itself politically, militarily, and economically with as many Latin American countries as it could. In
During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the United States was the most dominant power in the Western Hemisphere. European nations conceded to the United States their right of any intervention in the Western Hemisphere and allowed the United States to do whatever they wanted. The United States took this newly bestowed power and abused it. The United States intervened in many Latin American countries and imposed their policies on to these countries against their will. A perfect example of this aggression is what occurred in the Dominican Republic in 1904. The United States intervened in this sovereign nation and took control of their economy and custom houses. A memorandum from Francis B. Loomis, the United States Assistant
US interventionism in Latin America started a long time ago with the Monroe Doctrine, in 1823. A policy which stated that any intervention by external power for example from Europe is the Americas is a hostile act against the US. In simpler words, America is for the Americas. From the 1900’s till the beginning of the Cold War, the United States started the military intervention mostly in the Caribbean and Central American regions. This has started a long history of the United States intervening on Latin America issues.
What comes across your mind when you think of Latin America? Latin America consists of many different cultures, people with ethnic backgrounds; Mexico, Central America, South America. Latin America has the diversity in its people, and succession has brought along what makes Latin America what it is in modern times. In the article “Latin America: Myth and Reality,” the author mentions that “stereotypes spring from ignorance and bias,” which I think is significantly appropriate to bring up in this conversation (“Latin America” 3). Latin America is united by their differences, and I think most of the stereotypes are disappearing, while people are becoming more educated. But to comprehend what lies behind the mask, we all must disregard labels, and instead appreciate Latin America for who they all are. To mention a few, let’s dive into the article to understand some common stereotypes that someone might have.
This is a good thing about Latin America because it would probably impact the economy if it wasn’t there. It is the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal is a waterway that brings together the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean. It really helped trade in Latin America. The canal was built by the Americans in 1904 and a lot of leaders took over the project, including John Wallace, John Stevens and George Washington Goethals. The project was finished in 1914 after taking 10 years to build. The Panama Canal is an important feature to Latin America because it is a quicker way to import and export goods or cargo. It made it easier because instead of going all the way around South America you can go through Panama which saves you a lot of time. That means a lot of more ships pass through. If there was no Panama Canal like I said it would take a lot longer to travel to bring stuff somewhere by water. I also think there would be less ships traveling because not a lot of people would like to travel a long time at sea. I also think a lot of people would die because the trip would take so long. That is how the Panama Canal impacted Latin America in a good way.
Under the government of the President James Monroe in 1822, U.S opened up relations with Colombia; with a strategical interest for both nations. The agreements were based in expanding commercial relations and strengthen amity. However, U.S relations with Colombia took a different turn as a result of a new era Colombia’s civil war and drug trafficking . The interest of improve the foreign policy and the security of both countries; In order to maintain the U.S relations with Colombia, an analysis of the conflict in Colombia has to be made to protect the U.S national interest.
The proposed study will touch upon treatment of UACs while being detained and then how to maximize the benefits afforded them while being held and released into the custody of known family members or sponsors. Organizations such as the Women’s Refugee Commission have studied several cases to examine the issues that should be addressed for change in order to better aid UACs (Women’s Refugee Commission, 2009, p. 5-35). Other researchers have focused on how to protect UACs while they are seeking to obtain a favorable legal status in this country (Lopez, 2012, p. 1637-1677). Though limited, there are sources that have attempted to evaluate the immigrant experiences of UACs and other
The United States has been a heavily involved in Latin American affairs for a long time, and there is great controversy surrounding how good of a neighbor we have been. As the “Colossus of the North”, this country holds enormous power. The question is; have we used our power for good or for evil? At times, we have been generous to Latin American countries. We returned the Panama Canal to the Panamanians and created free trade with Mexico through NAFTA. However, the negative impact we have had outweighs the good. Time after time, the United States has put dictators into Latin American countries out of the fear of growing communism. We have meddled, taken the situations of our neighbors into our own hands with force, and vilified them for situations like the drug trade dilemma that are partially at the fault of the United States. Due to the selfish overstepping upon Latin American governments, our discrimination and blame upon immigrants and foreigners as well as patronizing actions like the Cuban embargo and the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, the Colossus of the North has historically been a poor neighbor to Latin American countries.