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War on Drugs

Week 5: Drugs

I found Alison Spedding’s article “The Cultural Life of Coca” incredibly interesting. I didn’t realise that there was a cultural significance behind growing coca, I thought it was only a way to earn money. I found the symbolism behind the coca plant so beautiful and meaningful. It started to feel more personal to me sinceContinue reading “Week 5: Drugs”

Posted in Blogs, Week 5 | Tagged with Bolivia, coca, The USA, War on Drugs

Week Twelve: Speaking Truth to Power

This chapter is no less depressing than last chapter. It seems the patterns of repression, disappearance, and corrupt leadership continued well into the 80s and 90s throughout Latin America. I think the information we read about the Madres organisation shows the desperation felt by the general public. Their strong opinions and passion when speaking into […]

Posted in Blogs, Week 12 | Tagged with Argentina, authority, drugs, United States, War on Drugs

Reflections Week 9: U.S. Foreign Policy in Latin America

Hi all. For this week’s post, I will be discussing and analyzing a video in relation to this week’s material, entitled “Commerce, Coercion, and America’s Empire III”. More particularly, I will be commenting on the remarks it made regarding U.S. Foreign Policy. To begin, the video states that the United States asserted its dominance and […]

Posted in Blogs | Tagged with Foreign Policy, Monroe Doctrine, Operation Condor, United States, War on Drugs

Week 12 – Speaking Truth to Power

When reading about the perils of Latin America, I sometimes sit back and think to myself, “how do we end this?” There are so many layers of trauma, corruption, and power imbalance that it seems an impossible struggle to fix. … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogs, Week 12 | Tagged with Argentina, Corruption, drugs, madres de la plaza, poverty, Protest, violence, War on Drugs, youth

Week 12 Reflections

For last week, I wrote about the question of who profited from the Terrors in Latin America of the late 20th century. This weeks reading brought me into a moment in which the economics of the War on Drugs were quite clear. The USA was sending huge amounts of military aid to countries or paramilitary […]

Posted in Blogs, Week 12 | Tagged with Capitalism, D.A.R.E., police impunity, war is a racket, War on Drugs

Week 12 – Speaking Truth to Power

This week, Dawson delves into some of the ways Latin Americans have resisted oppression and violence, particularly in the way they have worked to garner attention from the international community (especially the U.S.) as a tool for making a change in their reality. One of the examples the author discusses is the Madres de la […]

Posted in Blogs, Week 12 | Tagged with Argentina, Brazil, resistance, violence, War on Drugs

Week 1 Post – Reviewing Student’s Videos

Our introductory task for Latin American Studies 100 was to review the videos made by students of the previous year. In general, I was very impressed by the creativity and knowledge of the students and I am definitely looking forward to learning more in this course. The videos I watched were, Independence in Latin America: […]

Posted in Blogs, Week 1 | Tagged with caudillos, Meeting of Two Worlds, Student Videos Review, War on Drugs

First Week and Student Videos

Hello! My name is Elan and I am coming back to university to finish my degree after several years off. I work in law, and I also write science fiction and play music. I took this course because Latin America … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogs, Week 1 | Tagged with casta paintings, dictators, drugs, hierarchy, Music, Power, race, War on Drugs

Research Assignment (2)

          When looking at the war on drugs within Latin America, it becomes very difficult to get a clear picture of the workings of such an intricate organization. Journalists from different nations have attempted, some losing their lives in this noble cause, to try and at least give a glance into the industry. The Diario de Juarez Open Letter to the Drug Cartels, provides us with a peak into the lives of journalists within Mexico who try and report on the booming business in their nation.

            I first stumbled on this work within the textbook, and the first thought that came to mind was Jim Lopes. Lopes was a Brazilian journalist, raised in the lower class favelas of Rio, who used his ties to those people to complete some of the most comprehensive journalism on the cartels that ran neighborhoods like Villa Cruzeiro.  He was massacred by Elias Maluco (a well known gang boss) after his cover was blown. His brutal death made headlines for weeks in Brazil, and internationally, as now the whole world now knew that no one was safe, including those trying to simply tell the story were not safe.

            Approximately 8 years later, Mexico is still echoing the woes of insecurity for journalists. In this piece, journalists look for answers from the cartels. Confused as to where the old code with which they used to function in went, they question the new levels of brutality they are using. Although the people themselves are not directly opposing them, they are the majority of the causalities in these situations. The government is leading a very poorly organized war against drugs in the country, and it had left civilians to bear the brunt. Journalists used this as a site to air their grievances, frustrations and hopes. They state that journalists are usually protected in the events of war, however this law is being disregarded in the region. The journalists however vow not to be intimidated and continue their investigative journalism.

            This is quite relevant in studying where power truly lies in the region. Whoever controls the drug trade controls the people. The government in so deeply involved in the industry that it has disregarded its obligation to protect it’s people, and in this case, those trying to report on what is happening. The murder of journalists and their families make headlines because those directly affected give us the news. This becomes their avenue for change, and tends to be more effective. Where as civilians die everyday, they simply become a statistic. When it involves the media however, a different approach is taken. From this we begin to see not only how important it is to control the drug trade, but also how important it is to control the narrative surrounding it.

The Diario de Juarez Open Letter to the Drug Cartels;

http://www.unpuntoenelinfinito.com/analisis-denuncias/2559-carta-abierta-ciudadjuarez.html

Brutal Death sours cup joy;

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/jul/07/brazil.pressandpublishing

Posted in Blogs | Tagged with LAST 100, Mexico Ciudad Juarez Jim Lopes Rio De Janeiro, Research Assignment, War on Drugs

Research Assignment (2)

          When looking at the war on drugs within Latin America, it becomes very difficult to get a clear picture of the workings of such an intricate organization. Journalists from different nations have attempted, some losing their lives in this noble cause, to try and at least give a glance into the industry. The Diario de Juarez Open Letter to the Drug Cartels, provides us with a peak into the lives of journalists within Mexico who try and report on the booming business in their nation.

            I first stumbled on this work within the textbook, and the first thought that came to mind was Jim Lopes. Lopes was a Brazilian journalist, raised in the lower class favelas of Rio, who used his ties to those people to complete some of the most comprehensive journalism on the cartels that ran neighborhoods like Villa Cruzeiro.  He was massacred by Elias Maluco (a well known gang boss) after his cover was blown. His brutal death made headlines for weeks in Brazil, and internationally, as now the whole world now knew that no one was safe, including those trying to simply tell the story were not safe.

            Approximately 8 years later, Mexico is still echoing the woes of insecurity for journalists. In this piece, journalists look for answers from the cartels. Confused as to where the old code with which they used to function in went, they question the new levels of brutality they are using. Although the people themselves are not directly opposing them, they are the majority of the causalities in these situations. The government is leading a very poorly organized war against drugs in the country, and it had left civilians to bear the brunt. Journalists used this as a site to air their grievances, frustrations and hopes. They state that journalists are usually protected in the events of war, however this law is being disregarded in the region. The journalists however vow not to be intimidated and continue their investigative journalism.

            This is quite relevant in studying where power truly lies in the region. Whoever controls the drug trade controls the people. The government in so deeply involved in the industry that it has disregarded its obligation to protect it’s people, and in this case, those trying to report on what is happening. The murder of journalists and their families make headlines because those directly affected give us the news. This becomes their avenue for change, and tends to be more effective. Where as civilians die everyday, they simply become a statistic. When it involves the media however, a different approach is taken. From this we begin to see not only how important it is to control the drug trade, but also how important it is to control the narrative surrounding it.

The Diario de Juarez Open Letter to the Drug Cartels;

http://www.unpuntoenelinfinito.com/analisis-denuncias/2559-carta-abierta-ciudadjuarez.html

Brutal Death sours cup joy;

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/jul/07/brazil.pressandpublishing

Posted in Blogs | Tagged with LAST 100, Mexico Ciudad Juarez Jim Lopes Rio De Janeiro, Research Assignment, War on Drugs

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