America's Backyard : The United States and Latin America From the Monroe Doctrine to the War on Terror

The United States has shaped Latin American history, condemning it to poverty and inequality by intervening to protect the rich and powerful. America’s Backyard tells the story of that intervention. Using newly declassified documents, Grace Livingstone reveals the US role in the darkest periods of Latin American history, including Pinochet’s coup in Chile, the Contra War in Nicaragua and the death squads in El Salvador. She shows how George W Bush’s administration used the War on Terror as a new pretext for intervention; how it tried to destabilise leftwing governments and push back the ‘pink tide’ washing across the Americas. America’s Backyard also includes chapters on drugs, economy and culture. It explains why US drug policy has caused widespread environmental damage yet failed to reduce the supply of cocaine, and it looks at the US economic stake in Latin America and the strategies of the big corporations. Today Latin Americans are demanding respect and an end to the Washington Consensus. Will the White House listen? Acknowledgements......Page 7 Map of Latin America ......Page 9 1 Introduction......Page 10 Conquest and the Legacy of Colonialism......Page 17 The Monroe Doctrine and Manifest Destiny......Page 18 Challenging the British in the Caribbean and Central America......Page 19 Cuba and the Platt Amendment......Page 20 The Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, 1904......Page 21 US Military Interventions in Central America and the Caribbean, 1898–1934......Page 22 To Roosevelt......Page 23 Interventions and Dollar Diplomacy......Page 24 Banana Republics......Page 26 The United Fruit Co.......Page 27 The Good Neighbor Policy and Friendly Dictators, 1933–39......Page 28 The Second World War......Page 29 Juan Perón......Page 30 3 The Cold War: The Guatemalan Coup and the Cuban Revolution......Page 32 The CIA and Covert Action......Page 34 The Coup in Guatemala, 1954......Page 35 United Fruit and the Eisenhower Government......Page 36 ‘I have made a sad and cruel judgement’......Page 37 The Bolivian Revolution......Page 38 The Cuban Revolution......Page 39 Pushed into the Arms of the Soviet Union......Page 41 Bay of Pigs......Page 42 Bay of Pigs Declassified......Page 43 The Cuban Missile Crisis......Page 44 Exporting Revolution in Latin America and Che Guevara......Page 45 ‘Create two, three ... many Vietnams, that is the watchword’......Page 46 4 The Alliance for Progress......Page 48 Counter-insurgency......Page 49 The School of the Americas and Torture Training Manuals......Page 50 CIA’s Handbook for Torturers......Page 51 The Invasion of the Dominican Republic, 1965......Page 53 ‘The invasion by North American capitalist companies’......Page 54 The Quiet Intervention: Brazil, 1964......Page 55 Destabilization in Guyana......Page 56 Historical Roots of Latin American Dictatorships......Page 57 5 The Military Governments of the 1970s......Page 59 The 1964 Election......Page 60 Planning a Coup......Page 61 US Companies in Chile......Page 62 Urgent Directive sent from CIA Director Richard Helms to the CIA Station in Santiago......Page 63 The US Role in the 1973 Coup......Page 65 The Pinochet Coup......Page 67 ‘I shall sacrifice my life in loyalty to my people’......Page 69 Victor Jara: An Unfinished Song......Page 70 The US and the Pinochet Regime......Page 71 Missing......Page 72 Investors’ Paradise......Page 73 Nixon, Kissinger and Congress......Page 74 A Friend in Paraguay......Page 75 Kissinger Welcomes the Junta......Page 76 US Congress Stands Up for Human Rights......Page 77 Carter, Reagan and Dictatorships......Page 78 Ronald Reagan and the New Right......Page 80 Carter and the Nicaraguan Revolution......Page 81 The Somoza Dynasty: Loyal Allies of the USA......Page 82 Reagan’s War on Nicaragua......Page 85 Psychological Operations in Guerrilla Warfare......Page 86 The Freedom Fighter’s Manual......Page 87 The US Congress Approves Contra Aid......Page 88 The Sandinista Revolution......Page 90 El Salvador......Page 94 The Murder of Archbishop Romero......Page 95 The Invasion of Grenada......Page 98 ‘Anybody who thinks you’re going to find a cable that says that Roberto D’Aubuisson murdered the archbishop is a fool’......Page 101 US Training of Death Squads......Page 104 Garrison Honduras......Page 105 Ambassador Negroponte......Page 106 Genocide in Guatemala......Page 107 Reagan’s Legacy......Page 109 7 The End of the Cold War: 1989-2001......Page 110 The Invasion of Panama......Page 111 Noriega, Drugs and the United States......Page 113 Operation Just Cause......Page 115 The Clinton Years......Page 116 The Zapatistas......Page 119 The Zapatistas: Let Us Introduce Ourselves......Page 117 The United States and the Zapatistas......Page 120 The Invasion of Haiti......Page 121 Cuba......Page 123 Plan Colombia......Page 125 Breakdown of Plan Colombia Aid......Page 128 8 George W. Bush and the ‘War on Terror'......Page 129 The Spectre of Brazil’s President Lula......Page 132 The Radical Populists......Page 133 Who Makes US Foreign Policy?......Page 134 Who Was Who in the Bush Administration (2001–09): the Reaganites Return......Page 135 The New Strategy of the US Military in Latin America......Page 136 The US Military in Latin America......Page 137 Military Bases and Radar Sites Used by the US in Latin America......Page 138 US Military Priorities in Latin America......Page 139 Venezuela......Page 140 Chávez’s Personal Electoral Mandate......Page 142 Chávez Addresses the United Nations......Page 150 Bolivia......Page 152 An Interview with Activist Evo Morales......Page 153 Nicaragua......Page 157 ‘Daniel Ortega is a declared enemy of the United States’......Page 159 Haiti Timeline......Page 160 Cuba......Page 162 ‘Cuba is developing a biological weapons effort’......Page 163 The Bush Administration Harbours Terrorists......Page 164 Planning for the Death of Castro......Page 166 Colombia......Page 168 Internal Displacement in Colombia......Page 169 Who is Alvaro Uribe?......Page 170 Number of Colombian Troops Trained by the US......Page 171 US Military and Economic/Social Aid to Colombia ,1997–2007......Page 172 Why Do Peasants Grow Coca?......Page 176 Seizures of Cocaine, 1999–2004......Page 177 The Economic Advantages of Coca......Page 178 Meeting Coca Growers in the Amazon......Page 179 Who are the Drugs Traffickers?......Page 180 Narco-guerrillas?......Page 181 Fumigation......Page 182 The Herbicide......Page 183 Poisoning the Population?......Page 184 Contaminating Neighbouring Countries......Page 185 Biological Warfare?......Page 186 Coca Cultivation in the Andes, 1987–2006......Page 187 The Balloon Effect of Plan Colombia, 2001–2005, by Region......Page 188 Coca in Bolivia and Peru......Page 189 Evo Morales Takes a Coca Leaf to the United Nations......Page 191 The US Response......Page 192 Alternatives......Page 193 Reducing Demand......Page 194 Marijuana Cultivation......Page 195 10 Money, Multinationals and Misery......Page 197 Number of People Living in Poverty in Latin America, 1980–2002......Page 198 Inequality Rates, 1997–2001......Page 199 The IMF and the World Bank......Page 200 Neoliberalism and the IMF......Page 201 Latin America’s Foreign Debt, 1980–2000......Page 202 The Lost Decade......Page 203 Poverty, Unemployment and Falling Wages in the 1990s......Page 204 The Informal Economy: Working on the Street......Page 205 The Strategies of US Corporations in the 1990s......Page 206 The IMF’s Role in Argentina’s Downfall......Page 207 The World Trade Organization......Page 209 Trade Facts......Page 210 Free Trade Deals......Page 211 NAFTA......Page 212 Maquiladoras......Page 213 Made in Mexico......Page 214 Goods Made in Mexico’s Maquiladoras, 2005......Page 215 Maquiladoras in Central America – an Overview......Page 216 US Trade with Latin America......Page 217 The Economic Interests of the US State in Latin America......Page 218 US Exports and Imports, 2003......Page 219 Importance of the US for Latin American Trade, 2002–03......Page 220 The Threat from China......Page 221 Alternatives to Neoliberalism in Latin America......Page 222 US Investment Shares by Country, 1996–2002......Page 223 11 Coca-Cola, Cartoons and Caricature......Page 224 Negative Stereotypes of Latin Americans......Page 227 How Latin America Sees the US......Page 230 ‘The Haughtiness of the United States’......Page 231 Mr Danger......Page 232 Latin American opinions on US culture......Page 234 What Impact Has US Culture Had on Latin America?......Page 235 US Influence on Latin American Media......Page 236 Latinizing the United States......Page 238 Occupation by Ethnicity, 2006......Page 239 The Language and Identity of Latinos......Page 240 Postscript......Page 242 Appendix A: US Military Interventions in Latin America in the Twentieth Century......Page 246 Appendix B: Dictators Who Took Training Courses at the School of the Americas......Page 247 1 Introduction......Page 248 2 The Monroe Doctrine to the Second World War......Page 249 3 The Cold War......Page 250 5 The Military Governments of the 1970s......Page 251 6 Reagan and the Central American Tragedy......Page 253 7 The End of the Cold War, 1989–2001......Page 256 8 George W. Bush and the ‘War on Terror’......Page 257 9 Why US Drugs Policy Doesn’t Work......Page 261 10 Money, Multinationals and Misery......Page 262 11 Coca-Cola, Cartoons and Caricature......Page 263 Index......Page 266 Using newly-declassified documents, Grace Livingstone reveals the U.S. role in the darkest periods of Latin American history including Pinochet's coup in Chile, the Contra War in Nicaragua and the death squads in El Salvador. She shows how the U.S. administration used the War on Terror as a new pretext for intervention and how it tried to destabilize leftwing governments and push back the 'pink tide' washing across the Americas. America's Backyard also has chapters on drugs, economy and culture. It explains why U.S. drug policy has caused widespread environmental damage, yet failed to reduce the supply of cocaine and looks at the U.S. economic stake in Latin America and the strategies of the big corporations. Today Latin Americans are demanding respect and an end to the Washington Consensus. Will the White House listen? Introduction -- The Monroe Doctrine To The Second World War -- The Cold War : The Guatemalan Coup And The Cuban Revolution -- The Alliance For Progress -- The Military Governments Of The 1970s -- Reagan And The Central American Tragedy -- The End Of The Cold War, 1989-2001 -- George W. Bush And The 'war On Terror' -- Why Us Drugs Policy Doesn't Work -- Money, Multinationals And Misery -- Coca-cola, Cartoons And Caricature -- Postscript -- Appendix A: Us Military Interventions In Latin America In The Twentieth Century -- Appendix B: Latin American Dictators Who Took Training Courses At The School Of The Americas. Grace Livingstone. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 239-256) And Index.