Confronting Harsh Realities about U.S. History in Latin America
This issue has been consuming for me for the past couple weeks. As a full disclaimer, this post is not a criticism of President Trump or President Obama, but it is a criticism of the history of U.S. policies in Latin America for the past generation, and it’s a long look at the consequences of the actions from our government and looks at our responsibility for these issues today. In short, the United States has been involved or was complicit in violent overthrows of the Governments of Guatemala (1954), Brazil (1964), Chile (1973), Argentina (1976) and had continued support of terrorist drug cartels through the 1980’s. As an aside, there are very likely other incidents I’m leaving out. I will focus on how three of these violent episodes continue to impact Latin America - and provide sources that better detail each event for those interested.
Guatemala, 1954
After pressure from the United Fruit Company (yes, the one who sold bananas) the U.S. backed an overthrow of the Árbenz government after his policies threatened the holdings of the U.S.-owned United Fruit Company. The U.S both poured in significant military and financial support to ensure the success of the coup. John Dulles, Eisenhower’s secretary of state, worked hard in the Eisenhower administration to ensure its success and Eisenhower himself signed off on the Coup in 1953. Under the new Guatemalan government, over 70,000 people were investigated, and thousands were tortured or murdered under the U.S. backed regime. An act that continues to impact the Guatemala today.
Chile, 1973
The United States supported a bombing of Salvador Allende’s government, an act supported by president Richard Nixon himself. Chile, which had been one of the most stable governments in the world for decades, then fell into the hands of Pinochet - one of the most brutal dictators in recent history. Pinochet proceeded to round up thousands of people and murder them in a national stadium. Over 30,000 have testified they were tortured in his regime, while thousands more were killed or are still missing.
Colombia, 1980’s
While the “Just Say No” campaign was being promoted throughout the U.S. The United States government entered a secret arrangement with Colombian Drug Cartels and agreed to have “uncontrolled” shipments of cocaine into the United States in order to earn the “cartels trust”. This effort, while advertised as an effort to fight “communist insurgents”, empowered brutal cartels in their efforts to overthrow, murder, and intimidate thousands of families in Latin America, while contributing to the crack epidemic that impacted thousands more families in the United States. The drug trade continues to ravage much of Latin America, and U.S. policies have had a direct impact on the power of these institutions.
Here’s what it comes down to. Over the last two weeks, I’ve seen a lot of posts that distance ourselves of responsibility from the actions of our ancestors or our previous generations. However, as a Christian, I feel that the Bible has made it abundantly clear on our responsibility to help others in need. If we as a nation do not take responsibility for our past actions or work to undo the impacts of these actions, than we are no better than our ancestors.
http://foreignpolicy.com/2013/08/20/mapped-the-7-governments-the-u-s-has-overthrown/