What is neoimperialism?
How did the United States go about expanding its sphere of influence to include the rest of the Americas?
How did individual countries go about resisting US encroachment?
How did Cold War politics impact US foreign policy in Latin America?
What is the curse of the resource rich?
How are financial institutions used to enforce political goals?
How did the American frontier move over time?
How does US foreign policy in Latin America impact migration patterns within the continent?
What does it mean to be 'illegal'?
How are immigrant communities treated in the United States?
What is distinct about Chicano history in Los Angeles?
World Systems Model
Neoimperialism
Peronismo
Alliance for Progress
Operation Condor
DOI/CODI (Fifth Brazilian Republic)
Trujillo
Military Junta
Caudillismo
Bureaucratic Authoritarianism
The legacy of Che Guevara
The International Monetary Fund and World Bank
The Zapatistas
Illegality
NAFTA
Students will select a popular revolutionary or resistance leader or figure (including by not limited to Camilo Torres, Father Romero, Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, Victor Jara, Salvador Allende, Silvia Quintela, and Rigoberta Menchú). They will be expected to prepare a 10 minute presentation on their chosen figure including an analysis of the society that they were rebelling against. The major events of their lives, cause of death, and popular media made memorializing them should all be included in their presentation.
During the neocolonial period, a few Latin American authors and artists, some of whom were mestizo, gained fame for their literary and artistic talents. Choose one famous example, such as Joaquin Maria Machado de Assis, Ruben Dario, Jose Martí, Juan Rulfo, Mario Vargas Llosa, Octavio Paz, Julio Cortázar, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Jorge Luis Borges, Carlos Fuentes, Victor Jara, Oswaldo Guayasamin, or anyone that interests you in your research and investigate his/her life and accomplishments. Using this information, write an approximately 4 page biography about the author, making sure to include his background, examples of themes or topics covered in his/ her work, and an explanation of why the artists' work was significant. Consider the author’s impact on national identity and esteem in your discussion. Include a works cited page.
Choose an ongoing specific battle over indigenous land rights happening in any of the countries in the Americas. You can choose to focus on ongoing battles over oil drilling in the Yasuni in Ecuador, the deforestation of the Amazon in Brazil, the Standing Rock protests, the rise of the Zapatistas in Chiapas, or any other land rights battle you can find on your own. You should write a detailed analysis of this dispute, making reference to what is at stake and who the major actors are. There should be a nuanced look at the indigenous group involved, including specific histories of their relationship to the land in question. You should make clear what is at stake and who is the ultimate judicial arbiter. Your paper should include a good deal of independent research and reference to the anthropological schools studied throughout the year. The paper should be 10-15 pages and include a bibliography.