HIST 363-01, History of United States - Latin American Relations, Spring 2010

Abstract

This course examines the complex and often contentious relationship between the United States and Latin America from the late eighteenth century to today. Students explore intertwined political, cultural, economic, and religious threads with a particular emphasis on social and cultural history. Key themes include the 1823 Monroe Doctrine, the 1846-1848 Mexican-American War, the 1898 Spanish-American War, the Panama Canal, Dollar Diplomacy, the Good Neighbor Policy, the 1954 CIA overthrow of a Guatemalan president, the United Fruit Company, the 1959 Cuban Revolution, the Alliance for Progress, and North America’s alignment with right-wing dictators in response to the perceived communist threat throughout the Cold War to the early 1990s. Beyond historical texts, students utilize an array of primary sources, including newspapers, magazines, and Foreign Relations of the United States embassy correspondence, to contextualize the U.S. approach to Latin America and its southern neighbors’ response.