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March 23, 2009
Generating enough electricity to power a small city while offsetting several hundred thousand tons of carbon emissions sounds like an ideal source of eco-friendly energy. But tell that to the residents of La Ventosa in Oaxaca, Mexico. The construction of Latin America's largest wind farm on these communal campesino lands in the wind-whipped Isthmus of Tehuantepec is threatening their lands and their livelihoods.
March 19, 2009
In both Cuba and Venezuela, the revolutionary imagination has been free to develop in the domain of culture, preserving the legacy of struggle and serving as the social conscience of leftist governments. This legacy of struggle has been preserved and passed down, keeping alive alternative visions for social justice.
March 17, 2009
In an attempt to deter Mexican immigrants from crossing the border, the Border Patrol has released a music album titled, "Migracorridos." The corrido is a genre of Mexican folk ballads popular in the border region that frequently celebrates the exploits of outlaws and rebels. But like past campaigns, the Border Patrol's new musical initiative fails to address issues of safety and human rights along the U.S.-Mexico border.
March 16, 2009
The FMLN's Mauricio Funes declared victory at 9:30 last night. His challenger from the incumbent, far-right ARENA party conceded defeat a few hours later, bringing an end to 20 years of one-party rule. Funes will become El Salvador's first leftist head of state in the country's history.The essence of Funes’ campaign slogan, “hope is born,” could be felt throughout the country yesterday, with massive voter turnout reported from the metropolis of San Salvador to rural villages in the outlying departments.
March 12, 2009
The Ecuadoran government recently withdrew the legal status of the well-respected Acción Ecológica, a local environmental group. The organization has been highly critical of the Correa administration's environmental policies, particularly a government-backed mining law reform. For 20 years, the group has worked closely with indigenous movement and the communities directly affected by mining and oil exploitation. Activist-writer Naomi Klein wrote the President an open letter in support of Acción Ecológica.
March 12, 2009
In a repeat of interventionist statements by U.S. officials made during El Salvador's 2004 elections, congressional Republicans have once again openly threatened Salvadoran voters from the floor of the House by claiming Washington would have to review its polices on "cash remittances and immigration" should the FMLN win Sunday's election. One congressman even ridiculously referred to the opposition as the "pro-terrorist FMLN party." Please take action.
March 12, 2009
Commemorating International Women's Day, thousands of landless women engaged in protests across Brazil. Several of the protests targeted large eucalyptus plantations for pulp production, as part of a renewed effort by the Landless Workers' Movement (MST) and Vía Campesina to fight against multinational agribusiness corporations. As activists turn the screws on agribusiness, state repression against the landless movement has also increased.
March 9, 2009
More than 140 Latin America experts criticize the campaign of fear being waged by the ruling party in El Salvador. In an open letter, they ask the Secretary of State to declare that the United States government stands ready to work with whichever candidate is democratically elected by the Salvadoran people, and publicly disavow the ruling party's dirty campaign, which has used President Obama's image in an attempt to coerce Salvadorans from voting for the opposition.
March 9, 2009
A huge dam complex on the Amazon's Madeira River pits the imperatives of economic growth and integration in South America against the conservation of an environmentally sensitive area. Environmental conflicts such as the one underway on the Madeira will become increasingly common in South America as the initiative for the Integration of South American Regional Infrastructure (IIRSA) – of which the Madeira Complex is a part – reaches ever-widening implementation.
March 3, 2009
Should constructive criticism of Latin America's left-leaning governments play a role in North American solidarity activism? Can this criticism be made without playing into the hands of reactionaries? Can critiques be made without reproducing paternalistic North American finger wagging? Yes, but with an important caveat.