Harvest Of Empire: A History Of Latinos In America By Juan Gonzalez

The United States since the past until now has limited the historical information given to us. In reality only focusing on what the US has done that seems good. Giving little to no credit to other people who contributed to shaping the country we are today. However, in the book Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America by Juan Gonzalez. Throughout the book he talks, and explains much of history that is hidden from people today. Some of the events are about Latino pioneers and the conditions that compelled them to leave their homelands. Not just a particular group of Latinos, but all Central American Countries and what their country’s dilemma was at the time. The main problem was how the United States were overstepping to “help” the

The United States used its power to help Nicaragua when a war broke out to help protect the country’s plantations (Gonzalez 73). For the US it seems they used this opportunity to develop a plan on how to eventually control them. A few years later in the middle of 1912.. Washington and Wall Street dictated the country’s financial affairs by controlling a new National Bank for the next thirteen years (75). This caused marines to stay in Nicaragua to manage the bank in certain ways. After a while the marines left, but had to return in the year of 1925 because of a new civil war that broke out (75). The Country wanted to put a man in power that was a favorite among the people. The US marines thought different because they wanted someone with more power rather than someone with the support of the people. Reasons probably being the man could make his decisions to benefit his country. While doing so in 1927 it backfired when the peasants made an army and the marines took action. The soldiers “bombed and machine gunned six thousand unarmed men, women, and children” (75). People being outraged

Using these special forces to work with Cuban groups to mostly scare and dominate the people. “Within a few years of the Arbenz overthrow, most Guatemalans lost hope that peaceful change and democratic elections would return” (137). A man named Fidel Castro took his chance to resist the dictatorship. Fidel wanted the same as the people, and stand united as one. However, the government thought something different than his vision. “To hunt them down, the government responded with scorched-earth campaigns, pacifications programs and paramilitary death squads, often with assistance from the US Special Forces advisers” (137-138). This caused in 1976 more than twenty thousand deaths, also the spread of this to the countryside. The outcome is what the government wanted them to become powerful to produce this sham election. The US went to help the government for politics, but now the relations between the two are very different. Reading some articles I saw that the “US urges citizens not to travel to Cuba, cuts embassy safe and halts visa processing” (Chicagotribune). Learning from my teacher I found that you cannot travel there unless it’s with a school. Closing off Cuba to deal with their own problems today. Reading more into the article our president explained that Cuba has done “very bad stuff”. However, this is just how the US works because we have