This chapter helped me see that this economic boom in Latin America didn't really help many Latin Americans and was only exploited by the rich. This brought many revolutions, chaos, and blood during the boom and after the boom started to slow down. Much land was illegally taken from their owners by Porfirio Diaz's government and used to help build the infrastructure in Mexico and bring "modernization" to the state. This is one of the reasons why the Mexican revolution began and brought out figures like Emiliano Zapata, who inspired the Zapatismo movement. Zapata's slogan "Tierra y Libertad", which means Land and Liberty, is still widely used by the Zapatistas in their socialist views of regaining lands taken away by the Mexican government and achieve a greater democracy and social and economic benefits for the indigenous people. This reminds me of all the conflicts and issues that are present in North America with the indigenous people and North American governments. Although, these governments do try to give benefits to the groups that have been affected by colonization, they are still far away from resolving the issues revolving land. There is merit to the ideology that the land belongs to the first nations of North America but it is far from ideal to give these lands back. It will greatly affect the economy and will bring many issues! Who do we specifically give the land to? Who do we take land from? Should land owners who had nothing to do with colonization lose their property where in most cases was bought or gained in other ways? These are the same problems that would arise in Mexico or Latin America in general.
It was also interesting to read and learn in detail about Argentine's immigrant population growth, which was fueled by the 'modernity' race, and how it affected society and the revolutions within the country. It surprised me to find that many Argentine natives did to see immigrants in a good light. Even though this was due to a cleansing of ethnicity, these European immigrants were seen as alien who "spoke foreign tongues, ate alien food, did not celebrate the national traditions or owe any loyalty to Argentina". These immigrants did not have the right to vote but they largely formed the labour force in Buenos Aires. After World War One brought high commodity prices and lower wages, these middle class labourers went on strike and caused a great unrest in Buenos Aires. Many died and the strikes created strong right-winged groups which helped create a conservative movement in the country which put equality and human rights aside for capitalism and a hierarchical society.
Monday, October 26, 2015
Monday, October 19, 2015
Week 7: The Export Boom as Modernity
"Order equals progress" played a major role in shaping the economies of Latin America. Elites and political leaders believed that it was essential to create order within each republic in order to move forward as a country. Sadly, this brought many hardships and to an extreme, it started genocides!
From Dawson's video we learnt that the "Mano dura" (Iron Fist) policies, which were used by policing forces in Mexico, went to extremes to establish order. "Shoot first and ask questions never" was their motto which created the slang "la fuga", which described being shot while running away. They punished anyone who opposed or threatened the order within society and they went as far as killing caudillos, opposing political party leaders, and anyone who stood in the way of achieving a controlled society. I found very interesting that even to this day, the "Mano Dura" policies are used against drug gangs by Central American governments. However, these policies are very controversial. Some say that these extreme policies cause more violence than the alternatives and don't bring a solution. This is because these policies aim at eliminating the leaders within these groups and a gang without a leader causes insecurity and an internal struggle for control. This is why it creates more violence and often does not destroy the group or its activities in the long run.
It was interesting to learn that the boom of Latin America was largely due to the rising economies of North America and Europe. These growing economies were in great need of raw materials and resources and Latin America was rich with these. In turn, these "first world economies" were bringing new technologies and investment into the Americas. This not only helped the region become more modern but it also helped increase productivity and agricultural goods could be more aggressively cultivated. This was largely in part of the railroad systems that were emerging all throughout the republics. The railroads helped to make the world "smaller" and reachable!
Wealth and modernity made urban planners want to change their cities from "colonial backwaters" to the most modern, industrialized metropolises in the world. At the same time, elites wanted to bring more "white" to their countries to help modernity thrive. This led to genocides in certain areas around Latin America to clean their societies from the "bad" ethnicities. In regions where genocide was not an option, the twin strategy was to change, transform, and cure these ethnicities. This would be done by bringing education, better hygiene, and to try and control/train/civilize/contain these people. This occurred when scientific racism was at its highest.
From Dawson's video we learnt that the "Mano dura" (Iron Fist) policies, which were used by policing forces in Mexico, went to extremes to establish order. "Shoot first and ask questions never" was their motto which created the slang "la fuga", which described being shot while running away. They punished anyone who opposed or threatened the order within society and they went as far as killing caudillos, opposing political party leaders, and anyone who stood in the way of achieving a controlled society. I found very interesting that even to this day, the "Mano Dura" policies are used against drug gangs by Central American governments. However, these policies are very controversial. Some say that these extreme policies cause more violence than the alternatives and don't bring a solution. This is because these policies aim at eliminating the leaders within these groups and a gang without a leader causes insecurity and an internal struggle for control. This is why it creates more violence and often does not destroy the group or its activities in the long run.
It was interesting to learn that the boom of Latin America was largely due to the rising economies of North America and Europe. These growing economies were in great need of raw materials and resources and Latin America was rich with these. In turn, these "first world economies" were bringing new technologies and investment into the Americas. This not only helped the region become more modern but it also helped increase productivity and agricultural goods could be more aggressively cultivated. This was largely in part of the railroad systems that were emerging all throughout the republics. The railroads helped to make the world "smaller" and reachable!
Wealth and modernity made urban planners want to change their cities from "colonial backwaters" to the most modern, industrialized metropolises in the world. At the same time, elites wanted to bring more "white" to their countries to help modernity thrive. This led to genocides in certain areas around Latin America to clean their societies from the "bad" ethnicities. In regions where genocide was not an option, the twin strategy was to change, transform, and cure these ethnicities. This would be done by bringing education, better hygiene, and to try and control/train/civilize/contain these people. This occurred when scientific racism was at its highest.
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Week 6 - Citizenship and Rights in the New Republics
It was interesting to learn about how societies, culture, and views transformed in the new republics in Latin America. I had always thought that equality and freedom rights would have followed quickly after independence. In the contrary, I came to see that the Caste system still played a major role in society. It was also surprising to learn that European theorists used unproven forms of science to support their racism! Theorists used sciences like eugenics, phrenology, and craniometry to undermine the "lesser" races and to promote whiteness as a scientific virtue. Eugenics was used to convince people that "improving" the gene pool of society was essential to advance as a race and civilization. Both phrenology and craniometry played hand-in-hand in determining that the shape and size of one's skull or brain determined one's ability. It was thought that the brain was completely compartmentalized and that each different part of the brain had one function. Thus, if you used one ability the most, that part of the brain would grow and vice versa. This helped determine that African descents and the Irish were inferior to other races with properly shaped and sized skulls.
This made me think about modern day Latin America and how racism is still largely present in society. I was in Peru last Christmas and I was surprised to find more racism there than in North America. It is very troubling to see that racism is so deeply rooted in the ideology of society. You can totally feel the presence of the idea that one is more sophisticated or "privileged" the "whiter" one is. It is also very evident that anything European is popular and everyone strives to be "whiter".
It was also surprising to learn that many indigenous people did not support independence and supported crown rule. This was due to certain rights they were granted just as long as they were loyal to the crown. The reading definitely made it clear how hard it was to determine what citizenship was and how one would go on to integrate it into society after the liberation of the republics. Differences in language, education, and cultures played a major role in limiting these abilities and the path for equality in these new countries. The text showed me that slavery became one of the most controversial topics in the Americas and that it played a major role in the formation of these new societies and most interestingly affecting each republic in different ways.
This made me think about modern day Latin America and how racism is still largely present in society. I was in Peru last Christmas and I was surprised to find more racism there than in North America. It is very troubling to see that racism is so deeply rooted in the ideology of society. You can totally feel the presence of the idea that one is more sophisticated or "privileged" the "whiter" one is. It is also very evident that anything European is popular and everyone strives to be "whiter".
It was also surprising to learn that many indigenous people did not support independence and supported crown rule. This was due to certain rights they were granted just as long as they were loyal to the crown. The reading definitely made it clear how hard it was to determine what citizenship was and how one would go on to integrate it into society after the liberation of the republics. Differences in language, education, and cultures played a major role in limiting these abilities and the path for equality in these new countries. The text showed me that slavery became one of the most controversial topics in the Americas and that it played a major role in the formation of these new societies and most interestingly affecting each republic in different ways.
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