The U.S. and Latin America During the Cold War, 1954 to 1991. This is your medium question. Analyze the U.S.-Latin America relationship during the Cold. Be sure to address: Guatemala during Neocolonialism- the role US railroad and banana companies came to play in Guatemala in the early 20th century; the way Guatemala was pulled into the Cold War (1954); describe how and why the U.S. overthrew Arbenz in 1954 (this pulled Latin America into the vortex of the Cold War) and the consequences that that had for Guatemala and then the rest of Latin America (Cuba, Chile, Brazil, El Salvador, Nicaragua…). What were the origins of the Cuban Revolution and how did it impact the hemisphere? What were the US responses to the Cuban Revolution and to social revolutionary activity in Latin America? How and why did the Latin American militaries come to dominate politics in Latin America during the Cold War? What were the consequences of that for Latin American politics and Latin American society? What was the U.S. role in that? What were some ‘legacies’ of the Cold War on the region?
Study hints: our lectures and notes; our films “CNN Cold War, Reds and Backyard” “School of the Americas”; my articles: “The US and Latin America since the end of the 19th Century,” “The Monroe Doctrine (and consequences for Latin America)”; Chasteen’s ch’s 8, 9 and 10; short articles “Social Revolution”, “Cold War”, “The Lesser of Two Evils” by David Schmitz, & “The Beliefs behind the Policies” by Lars Schoultz
