Anyone who regularly reads U.S. periodicals knows that their Latin American coverage is woefully inadequate. Newspapers and national magazines are crisis oriented; scholarly journals are inclined to print material of peripheral value in analyzing current situations. Anti-communism is normally the perspective from which political analyses are approached. The "democratic" U.S. press seldom illustrates or discusses the implications and effects of U.S. power in Latin America.
Despite the extent of U.S. involvement there is no widely available vehicle for the opinions of Latin Americans on the effects of this involvement. Though it is often recognized that U.S. standards and models are not necessarily applicable to Latin American situations,* the feelings of those for whom U.S. aid is allegedly intended (i.e., the Latin American lower classes) are neither elicited nor heard.
NACLA has agreed to help John Gerassi raise $1,500 for a promotional "dummy" issue of a magazine which would begin to fill some of these gaps. The magazine would have no editorials. It would seek to encourage in-depth research and journalism conducive to analysis and action; to encourage those Latin Americans who feel few North Americans know or care what the effects of U.S. policy are; and to help build and inform a community of people who wish to learn more about how our lives affect the lives and aspirations of over 200 million Latin Americans.
Any help from you in raising the initial $1,500 would, we feel, be a public service to us all. Please send contributions to: Procter Lippincott, NACLA, Room 924, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, New York 10027.
* Copies of Orlando Fals Borda's speech "The Ideological Biases of North Americans Studying Latin America" are available from the NACLA office.
