US-Latin America Relations By STUDENT NAME

Transcript:US-Latin America Relations By STUDENT NAME:
US-Latin America Relations By STUDENT NAME Contents Background History of US-Latin America Relations Case study: Case study: Conclusion Sources Background Both of the Americas were colonized by European powers from the late 15th century, until the 19th or 20th century. North America was dominated by Britain and France, while South America was primarily colonized by the Spanish and Portuguese. Main Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, and Native languages. Because of this, the Latin American social structure was a strict social hierarchy, with large landowners from Spain owning 60-90% of agricultural land, followed by the military and church, and then the working poor, many of who remained illiterate. Because of this structure, the wealth gap was enormous. This is the cause of many social, economic, and political issues still seen today, especially as the wealth gap gave communism a wide appeal in this area. History of US-Latin America Relations From independence, the US was sympathetic to struggles against European powers in Europe, but remained neutral until the Napoleonic Wars. The Monroe Doctrine was the first and most important policy The United States made concerning Latin America. Dictated in 1823, President Monroe forbade further European colonization in the Americas, declaring them part of the United States’ sphere of influence, as part of the idea of Manifest Destiny. Example In the mid-19th century, the US decided to build a canal through Central America. However, the treaty to obtain territory in Panama was rejected by the Columbian Senate. The US responded by supporting a revolt with overthrew the government and replaced it with one sympathetic to the States, who granted the US rights to the ‘canal zone’ for a rather small rental fee, a right which the US has protected, often with a show of force. This would become the norm in US-Latin American relations, arguably to this day. Source: http://screechingkettle.blogspot.jp/2011/10/putting-todays-wars-in-perspective.html History Continued Cuba and the Spanish American War The Roosevelt Corollary (1905), a response to political instability in the Dominican Republic, asserted that the US right to intervene in Latin America, in order to maintain stability. The Cold War saw all the Same policies, but now with the added objective of stopping the spread of communism, not just intervening according to US interests. Case Study: Chile In 1970, socialist candidate Salvador Allende won the Presidency in Chile. He was overthrown after failing to immediately improve the country’s economy in a US supported coup. This coup