More than Communism
PBSUCCESS took place during the Cold War, a time of intense fear of Communism in the US. The threat that Communism existed in Latin America intensified these fears due to the threat existing in the United States’ “backyard.” The newly created Central Intelligence Agency’s operation to overthrow Guatemalan president Jacobo Arbenz was driven by more than just the threat of Communism. A "chain of errors" took place between 1952 and 1954 (SH, XXXII). Geopolitical power as well as economic interests, specifically the United Fruit Company (UFCO), were being threatened by the Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz, although he was implementing a democracy. Preserving this power was the original intention of US intervention which,
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through use propaganda and fear of Communism, turned into an anticommunist operation. The importance of UFCO in this operation and the hypocritical reaction to Guatemalans new democracy reveal that the driving force behind PBSUCCESS was more than just Communism. Use of paranoia that communism was close to controlling Guatemala, although it had no real threat, justified the operation, and for many, it was the reason for PBSUCCESS. The United Fruit Company served as both an important economic and geopolitical force for the United States in Guatemala. Although the company originated due to the violent dictatorship of Jorge Ubico, the company made “Guatemala the principal Central American destination for United States trade and capital,” and the company also served as an important source of geopolitical power in Latin America due to the company’s control of the railroad, electric utility and telegraph (SH, 10). When Jacobo Arbenz democratically gained presidency and created reforms for the aid of repressed workers within Guatemala, US political and economic interests in Latin America were adversely affected. Although the company conducted unfair practices that would not have been tolerated if placed in the United States, the fact that it was an American company created the mindset that it should be free of Guatemalan intervention (SH, 16). It was the agitation of this American company that led to anti-communist language when discussing Guatemala thus proving the original driving force behind CIA interest in overthrowing Arbenz had economic and geopolitical interests. Without UFCO, the United States would lose their large presence in Latin America. In a time of anti-communist paranoia and US desire to have more predominance that the Soviet Union, The United States needed UFCO (SH, 19). The United States was interested in having as much control as possible in the Western Hemisphere, even through the use of corrupt companies, under the guise of anti-communist motivation. CIA documents note the importance of UFCO and the US monopoly of the railway to PBSUCCESS (SH, 144). Another peculiar aspect of PBSUCCESS was the hypocrisy on the part of the United States. Firstly, Arbenz was democratically elected and had been a key figure in preventing Francisco Arana from creating a military junta, actions that would have seemed to please the United States (SH, 11). Instead, the CIA supported Castillo Armas, who also wanted to implement a junta, because he was found to be more “malleable and receptive to suggestions” (SH, 117). This hypocritical action on the part of the United states proves that expanding democracy was not a driving force behind PBSUCCESS, but rather, enforcing American control and geopolitical power in Latin America. Another revealing factor was the United States agencies reaction to the implementation of land reform through Decree 900 by Arbenz, which directly affected The United Fruit Company, as well as other landholding elites, and sought to narrow the wide gap between the rich and poor in Guatemala. The United States had created reforms like this in Japan and Formosa and it was seen as "a necessary step for creating a capitalist economy" (SH, 22, 144). However, when such a program of land reform was created by the Guatemalan state rather than the United States government, the reforms were seen as communist driven. This reveals the US motivation in geopolitical control of the Western hemisphere rather than anti-communist goals. With these points in mind, it cannot be said that anti-communism was not a motivation in PBSUCCESS.
UFCO lobbyist, Edward L. Bernays, created stream of anti-communist propaganda in US media by discussing Communist activities in Guatemala (SH, 16, 18). The increase of anti-communist paranoia that Bernays and other American propagandists created was unquestionably a driving force for CIA intervention in Latin America. For many of those involved, ideological motivations were the driving force for PBSUCCESS because of the atmosphere of fear created in the United States. However, these motivations were the result of UFCO interference and abuse of the tense Cold War fear of …show more content…
Communism. Communists did exist in Guatemala.
The Partido Guatemalteco del Trabajo (PGT) was a leftist workers party with communist members. However, it was not a strong party and "Arbenz did not appoint any Communists to the Cabinet" (SH, 21). Jose Manuel Fortuny, the leader of the PGT, did have a friendship with Arbenz and worked with Arbenz in the creation of Decree 900, which became suspicious to the United States. Communism in Latin America, however, was vastly different than Communism in the Soviet Union. Land reform was necessary to create a democracy in Guatemala, and although ideologically different, the two men recognized this. "The proposal aimed not to create Stalinist collectives..." but aimed to remove tyranny and allow the creation of capitalism to move forward in Guatemala (SH, 22). The lack of differentiating the PGT from the Soviet Union lead to anti-communism obsession without any real justification of communist threat. As PBSUCCESS ended, no evidence was found connecting Guatemala and the Soviet Union (SH, 108). The atmosphere of anti-communist obsession in the US was a motivator for the new Agency’s desire to succeed, but the lack of connection between Latin America revealed the CIA was quick to implement PBSUCCESS without much thought of the political situation in
Guatemala. The driving force behind PBSUCCESS was not just ideological. It was an accumulation and chain reaction of several motivations. It is clear that the United Fruit Company was one of the driving forces in The United States’ interest in overthrowing Jacobo Arbenz. If UFCO had not existed in Guatemala and, as a result, the United States did not hold the same power in Guatemala as it did before Jacobo Arbenz presidency, it can be said PBSUCCESS would not have occurred and the creation of democracy would have been celebrated. However, the power and economic benefits UFCO gave the US in Guatemala was directly affected by Arbenz presidency. When United States’ power in Latin America was threatened that led to an unusual amount of hypocrisy on the part of US revealing that the spread democracy was not a goal of PBSUCESS. It was control. To say PBSUCCESS was enacted solely to stop the spread of communism would be ignoring important factors of the situation. Geopolitical and economic power were original driving forces of the operation. Over time, in order to be able to act on the threats on US power, the current atmosphere of anti-communist fear was used to create paranoia, among both the American people and American leaders, and allowed PBSUCCESS to be able to occur. Word Count: 1204
Even after the strong pressure by US Secretary of State, the Organization of American States resolves to condemn what they believed was communist infiltration in the Americas. Under the control of Colonel Carlos Castillo Armas, he received a strong financial and logistic support from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to prepare his Army in Honduran territory to attack Guatemala. The CIA's involvement had been approved by Eisenhower as a way to stop what they considered a spread of Communism in the Americas. In June, 1954 the troops of Carlos Castillo crossed the Honduran-Guatemalan border and began their attack against Arbenz government. By this time not only was Arbenz internationally isolated but he had also lost much support from his own army and peasant population. Most of the Guatemalans felt they were in a very weak position compared to the invading army, after they heard from an ally radio that reported a larger invading army and the bomber that dropped some bombs around Guatemala City. The demoralized population simply resigned to be defeated by Castillo. Arbenz himself was hard hit when the invasion began. When he realized that any kind of resistance would only bring more deaths and very little success for his movement he decided to do what was best and decided to announce
When focusing on Nicaragua one will need to pay close attention to the rebel group called the Sandinistas who took over Nicaragua’s previous dictator, Anastasio Somoza in 1979, in which the United States Congress decided it would be best to provide them with aid that lasted till 1981.1 Nicaragua’s geographic location made it a big concern for President Reagan based on his philosophy that surrounded the Reagan Doctrine. At that point, President Reagan ended the aid deal and adamantly advised that support be sent to those who were trying to over throw the new socialized, Sandinista leadership.2 Furthermore, the Nicaraguan’s were dealing with some of the worst warfare ever, by the mass killings that took place, which were at the mercy of death squads.3 This gruesome realization allowed President Reaga...
Models for post-revolutionary Latin American government are born of the complex economic and social realities of 17th and 18th century Europe. From the momentum of the Enlightenment came major political rebellions of the elite class against entrenched national monarchies and systems of power. Within this time period of elitist revolt and intensive political restructuring, the fundamental basis for both liberal and conservative ideology was driven deep into Latin American soil. However, as neither ideology sought to fulfill or even recognize the needs or rights of mestizo people under government rule, the initial liberal doctrine pervading Latin American nations perpetuated racism and economic exploitation, and paved the way for all-consuming, cultural wars in the centuries to come.
...and the quest to control and acquire fairway land while Iran, Guatemala, South Vietnamese and Chile was the use of the CIA and the ideology to stop communism.
The Yarur textile factory played an important role in Chilean politics, and was the central role for the uprisings and downfalls in Chilean history. Its first key component was that it represented an economic empire based of paper and cloth that used these resources to gain political power through the aspect of having wealth. The second element of the Yarur factory that gave its importance in Chilean politics was that it represented a monopoly of Chile’s political capital. In Weavers of Revolution, Peter Winn depicts the relationship from a “revolution from above” and “revolution from below” and how the workers of the Yarur textile factory faced an on-going struggle between the working class and the government. Winn focuses his analysis of the Chilean road to socialism around the Yarur textile factory because it is through the modernization and changes of political, economic, and industrial policies that ultimately led to the workers movement to bring about a revolution.
Therefore, establishing anti-Bolshevism in the United States was Robert F. Kelley’s mission. Kelley an Irish Catholic trained by Russian refugees ran the Eastern European Affairs division in the State Department (Leffler, The Specter of Communism, 19). Kelley’s intense dislike for the Bolsheviks demands that his aides join actively in his views. One of his service officers is George F. Kennan who joins in the close observation of Bolshevik destabilizing and expansionist activities that cause unrest in Mexico, Nicaragua, Cuba, Spain and Greece (Leffler, The Specter of Communism, 19). Was Kennan’s containment strategy thinking set off with Kelley’s training? Was Kennan’s awareness of the ongoing Russian Communist activities the basis for his ideas? History proves that George Kennan’s ideas on containment were the basis of NSC-68 and...
In the 1960s America, the pope of democratic faith, preached to the world about the evils of communism. When Marxist Salvador Allende lost by three percent in the Chilean election of 1958, the United States decided that the next election of 1964, could not be left in the hands of democracy. The United States began to work to stop Allende from becoming president. They went so far as to create projects to help train and organize so-called anti-communists among the peasants, laborers, students, and the media. Despite their efforts, in 1970 Salvador Allende was elected president through plurality. He became the first Marxist in the world to gain power in a free democratic election. Now you might ask, why would the United States be so interested in the politics of a third world country, furthermore the beliefs of one man. After all a person can only do so much, right?
America had begun to indulge in the unilateral environment afforded to it during the Cold War. As the Soviet Union began to collapse in the 1980s, the United States was on its way to becoming a solo super power. This acquisition of complete power would inevitably lead the country into new problems, including those foreign and domestic. One of the main issues that came around in the 1980s for the Unites States was the Iran-Contra Affair, which involved the Reagan Administration. With the United States readily inserting influence across the globe, the Iran-Contra Affair proved how foreign intervention can lead to scandal and disgrace in the modern world. Along with detrimental scandals, the Iran-Contra Affair showed how America’s imperialistic behavior in South America was beginning to catch up. In order to remain a dominant influence in South America, the United States had no choice but to topple governments that did not align with American ideology. Using guerillas like the Contras insinuates America’s cornerstone of doing what is necessary in order to satisfy foreign interest.
Immerman, Richard. The CIA in Guatemala the foreign policy of intervention. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1985.
The “Panama Deception,” directed by Barbara Trent of the Empowerment Project and narrated by actress Elizabeth Montgomery, observes a distinct failure to implement 20th-century democracy in Latin America in the late '80s and early '90s. More specifically, the film documents the U.S. invasion of Panama under "Operation Just Cause” during this period, showing how the cause was anything but just. Rather, the film shows how the Operation intended to impose a biased renegotiation of the aforementioned treaties.
...icies from past Presidents. Furthermore, it was strongly detrimental to Latin America, for the reason that it eliminated the possibility of increasing Latin American exports to the United States, thereby destroying the hopes of Latin American countries focused upon President Nixon’s policy of “trade rather than aid.” During this time, the government justified itself by proclaiming that the United States needed to focus on avoiding involvement and learning from the mistakes made in Vietnam. All in all, over the course of the presidencies of Monroe, Roosevelt, FDR, and Nixon, the U.S. intervened in Latin America numerous times. Now, was it the right thing to do? At those specific points in time, the government thought so. Various arguments can be forged over the suitability of the actions of the U.S. during these times; however that is a discussion for another time.
THESIS : “ The United States didn’t want to get involved in the Spanish-American War, but was dragged into it due to yellow journalism, they wanted to control the seas, and wanted complete control over Cuba.”
Latin American Independence was the drive for independence from Spain and France by the Latin American people. There were many contributing factors that ultimately led to the uprising of Latin American colonies. Europe's strong hold on the economic and political life of Latin America, was creating friction between the Latin Colonies and the European nations. Eventually, this would become enough for the Latin American people and the drive for independence from France and Spain would begin.
The tropical island of Cuba had been an object of empire for the United States. Before the Missile Crisis, the relationship between Castro and the US were strained by the Bay of Pigs occurrence in 1961. This was where counterrevolutionary Cubans were American funded and tried to invade Cuba and overthrow Castro. However, the counterrevolutionaries failed. Castro then found an alliance with the Soviet Union and an increase of distrust that Castro had on the US. On January 18, 1962, the United States’ Operation Mongoose was learned. The objective would be “to help the Cubans overthrow the Communist regime” so that the US could live in peace. Consequently, Castro informed the Soviet Union that they were worried about a direct invasion on Cuba, thus longed for protection against th...
Third world countries became the perfect battleground for cold war proxy battles during the early 1940’s to late 1990’s. United States wanted to flex its political muscle and try to curtail the spread of Soviet Communism in the developing nations. Most of the nations in developed world had already made their political and socio-economic stand regarding the form of governance and leadership pursued. Underdeveloped nations in Asia, Latin America and Africa were still vulnerable and easily influenced in terms of ideologies and political direction. Most nations in Latin America like Chile were recovering from colonialism and thus logistic, economic and political aid from powerful nations to propel their economies which made it easy for Americans and Russians to act as their “saviors’”. The quest for global dominance had intensified between United States and USSR and the shift was focused to developing nations like Chile. Both Americans and Russians used different mechanisms to enhance their propaganda and support the regimes which were friendly to them and used any means necessary to topple hostile regimes. CIA used covert operations in Chile and most of the Latin nations to plant their puppet leaders in order to safeguard their foreign policy interests and maintain dominance. Military coups and social unrests were planned, orchestrated and executed with the assistance of CIA. The research paper tries to critical analyze the impact of the cold war on Chile and influence of United States.