Earlier in this chapter you read about the great changes sweeping through Europe, Africa, and Asia in the second half of the 1900s. These include political revolutions, industrial revolutions, and a movement toward greater unity among nations. It should not surprise you to learn that change has been transforming the nations of the Americas as well.
Before World War II, the United States and Canada were the only major industrial nations in the Americas. The other nations were mainly rural. In the past Brazil imported most of its manufactured goods such as clothes and cars. Today, however, Brazilian factory workers make everything from blue jeans to armored cars. Some of their most important buyers are other nations of the Americas such as Canada and the United States.
Trade has made the nations of the Americas increasingly interdependent. This means that they count on each other to meet the needs and wants of their peoples. Agreements about trade and politics have made countries like the United States, Mexico, and Canada closer neighbors.
Assigned Readings: