latin america and cold war

Marxism gained popularity in the area. The United States, according to Latin American nationalists, should be seen as a colonial foe. Members of the US government have personal interests in Latin America; for example, the secretary of state, John Forster, was involved in the banana empire. In Bolivia, the National Liberation Movement seized control and increased miners’ rights and salaries (Chasteen, 2001).
Because of the neoliberals’ influence, new transnational companies began investing in Latin America. The effect of this investment was the use of inexpensive labor, such as female labor. They were used to assemble the parts which were imported. Also, the machines that were installed were already used in America. The equipment was out of date. Latin America’s economic subordination was reinforced through this kind of industrialization. On the other hand, policymakers in the United States viewed this as a natural development of global capitalism. Economic nationalism of Latin American was to be combated at all costs.

An alliance formed between Latin Americans and the United States increased the power of the Latin Americans’ military. The United States raised the aid for the Latin Americans to curb the threat posed by communism. Although the policies introduced by the United States, for instance, National Security doctrine encouraged dictatorship, it also promoted economic development. Moreover, public health also improved (Charlip & Burns, 2016).

Neoliberalism came up after the cold war. Capitalism was introduced in the history of Latin America, after the collapse of communism. Neoliberalism emphasized on free trade, export production, as well as the comparative advantage doctrine. The people who ascended to power such as President Cardoso of Brazil adopted the policy even if he inspired a radical group all over Latin America as well as the United States in the 1970s and 1980s (Rabe, 2014).

The public services as well as corporations formed all over Latin America by the nationals were either sold off or privatized by the liberals. The declaration indicated a state of economic independence. Around the world, state bureaucracy is inefficient. As a way of protecting the industries in Latin America, the neo-liberals slashed the import tariffs raised by the nationalists. Also, the capital flows were deregulated. This means multinational corporations could not take out money freely each year (Burkholder et al., 2018).

In the course of the 1980s, several countries from Latin America struggled with debt. The price of world oil was high, and there was substantial short-time borrowing which resulted in the growth of the debts. In 1982, Mexico, as well as Brazil, temporarily stopped paying. The increasing rates of interest in the 1980s, resulted to the refinancing of the short-term loans at rates which were high. The International Monetary Fund tried to assist by encouraging the reduction of social spending. Trade agreements came up after the cold war, for instance, the MERCOSUR and the North American Free Trade Agreement. Through the negotiations, dwellers of the middle-class apartments accessed the internet. Also, the reduction of tariffs reduced the prices of products such as cellular telephones.

Today there is a resemblance to Latin American life to that of that of the United States. Besides, the attitudes, institutions, as well as practices have been Americanized. Latin America, as well as the United States, are facing similar challenges, for example, that of global warming. Latin America attracts multinational corporations by allowing factories pollute the environment. An example is the maquiladora production which is situated between the borders of Mexico and the United States (Meade, 2016).

References

Burkholder, M. A., Johnson, L. L., & Rankin, M. (2018). Exploitation, Inequality, and Resistance: A History of Latin America since Columbus. Oxford University Press.

Charlip, J. A., & Burns, E. B. (2016). Latin America: An Interpretive History. Pearson.

Chasteen, J. C. (2001). Born in blood and fire: A concise history of Latin America. WW Norton & Company.

Meade, T. A. (2016). History of Modern Latin America: 1800 to the Present. John Wiley & Sons.

Rabe, S. G. (2014). The most dangerous area in the world: John F. Kennedy confronts communist revolution in Latin America. UNC Press Books.