Wall Street and Guatemala street.
You might know that a lot Guatemala's current problems are thought to basically stem from 1954 when democratically elected president Jacobo Arbenz was tossed out with the help of the United States. It took Guatemala something like 30 years to be able to democratically elected a leader again, a 36 year civil war happened, and basically, as current president Colom says in the article below, the country still hasn't really recovered.
Here is a pretty basic article from CNN about Guatemala starting to recognize the roll of ousted-Arbenz and "re-write" him back into history.
Some years back I guess former prez Bill Clinton officially "apologized" for the CIA-backed coup - our bad! - but I don't think there's been much more than that. I'm no history expert but I am a lover of most things Guatemala, including history and politics, but it's pretty clear the United States is very responsible for much of how the last 60 years has panned out in Guatemala. When we look at the issue of immigration in the US and see all these folks from Central America coming up we must make the connection as to why they seek work in the North, why are their countries and governments unable to provide for their own folks? Both Guatemala and El Salvador were left battered after civil wars and US intervention. I don't know, all I'm saying is you can't poison other people's Kool Aid then get mad when they want to take a sip of your nice, clean Kool Aid.
Apology reignites conversation about ousted Guatemalan leader
October 22, 2011 -- Updated 1802 GMT (0202 HKT)
(CNN) -- Jacobo Arbenz was overthrown as president of Guatemala in a CIA-backed coup in 1954, a seminal event that historians say set the Central American country on a path of dictatorships and civil war that would last for decades.
Even though he was democratically elected and popular at the time, after he was deposed, his reputation was ruined and he was written out of Guatemala's history books. He died in exile in 1971.
This week, 57 years later, current President Alvaro Colom made a public apology to the Arbenz family, a large gesture in Guatemala. But there is a larger rehabilitation of the image of Arbenz underway. Textbooks are being rewritten and a new biography will soon be published. But this clearing of Arbenz's reputation does not console everyone. Some ask: When will the United States, which was behind the coup, apologize for its meddling?
"As president of the republic, as commander-in-chief of the army, I want to apologize to the Arbenz family for that great crime committed on the 27th of June of 1954," Colom said Thursday. "Guatemala changed that day, and we haven't yet recovered."
The apology "doesn't have a lot of resonance in the United States -- though it should," said Stephen Schlesinger, an Adjunct Fellow at the Century Foundation and co-author of a book on the 1954 coup.
The United States, after all, was the one behind the event.
In a nutshell, there were two main arguments about what led the United States to see Arbenz as a threat, one economic and one political.
At the time, the largest landowner in Guatemala was an American firm, the United Fruit Company. Arbenz, in an effort to reduce income inequality in the country, instituted a land reform program that would have taken unused United Fruit Company land and turned it over to farmers.
"We're talking huge amounts of land," Schlesinger said, enough to grow the middle class.
Another author of a book on the subject, Johns Hopkins Professor Piero Gleijeses, said that 100,000 families -- representing about half a million Guatemalans -- benefited from the reform. Arbenz's goal was to double that number by the end of his term, he said.
But United Fruit Company went to President Dwight D. Eisenhower and labeled Arbenz as a communist and a threat to democracy.
This political argument gained traction, and the CIA became involved.
According to Schlesinger, the CIA found a group of disgruntled Guatemalan right-wingers opposed to Arbenz who set up an elaborate ploy to oust him. The CIA helped set up secret radio broadcasts along the perimeter of Guatemala. They used fake broadcasts to warn of an impending massive revolt, and backed it up with planes that dropped bombs (many of them fake) in Guatemala, Schlesinger said.
The fake broadcasts and bombings "put such fear in the small country" that it just collapses, he said.
The Guatemalan army went along with it because the United States convinced them there would be an invasion otherwise, Gleijeses said.
They were "terrorized into betraying" Arbenz, he said.
Given the deep U.S. involvement, Gleijeses said this of Colom's apology to the Arbenz family: "It's not very clear what he's apologizing for."
"What he should do, if he has the guts, is to ask the United States to apologize for their crime," he said.
The son of the ousted president, Jacobo Arbenz Jr., said the such an effort was already underway. Signatures are being collected for a petition to the U.S. government to apologize for its role, he said.
The State Department said that its Guatemalan embassy was preparing a statement regarding Arbenz, but as of Saturday it had not been released.
For the younger Arbenz, the apology from the Guatemalan government is a great first step.
"We are happy with this," he said. "Justice has been done."
The Arbenz family had gone before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in 1999 to demand the apology from the government. Earlier this year, the commission negotiated a number of actions that the government promised to undertake.
In addition to the public apology, the government is making economic reparations to the family and is naming a highway after him. School curricula are also being revamped to give Arbenz a more prominent role in Guatemala's history.
Even some Guatemalans CNN spoke with brushed off the significance of the apology, saying it was so long ago that it is irrelevant.
But according to Schlesinger, the ramifications of the coup were far-reaching. Instead of 30 years of bloody civil war, Guatemala may have remained a democracy and influenced neighboring countries to do the same, sparing thousands of lives.
Gleijeses says that his sources confirm that Arbenz in actuality was a communist, but had no aspirations to form a dictatorship. His only goal was to address the nation's serious inequality, something that the land reform could have accomplished, he said.
But with a strong military, whether there would have been democracy even without the coup is an open question, he said.
Colom's apology seems, at the very least, able to reignite the debate of Arbenz's legacy and the problems that Guatemala faces, many which have been consistent since 1954.
~~
I took this picture in Nogales, MX, June 2009, while volunteering with No More Deaths ~ Young migrant guys trying to head Norte, including Jose in the middle, whose family in Venecia I now know well (sister Mimi had the baby recently, mentioned in a recent post).
On the left, a Guatemalan guy named Luis and on the right, I never learned his name, he went by "Puebla" because he was from Puebla, MX. These guys would come to meals twice a day then volunteer to stay after to help clean up.
When I meet people like these guys I am struck by the depth of problems in the countries they come from. It's so easy for Americans to blame "them" for whatever and put up walls keeping "them" out, but I don't think it is fair for the US to hate on immigrants since the US played such a strong role in messing up their country in the first place. I think we need to make clear, attainable paths to work visas or permits, citizenship, something. Because the path to legally come to the US for any regular Joe or Josephina from Central America is practically impossible. And most migrants would do what any of "us" would do, try to make more than $3 a day to support our families if it were possible.
I recently listened via Podcast to an episode of This American Life with a ride-a-long with one of the Minutemen, those people - regular civilians - who patrol the desert looking for immigrants. You can here it HERE, ("act one"). Well I didn't know this, but according to this episode and the branch of the Minutemen that was being shadowed, they apparently think humanitarian groups that leave water in the desert or try to help immigrants with medical care, etc. are working with the "narcos." Hmm. It never occurred to me that they would make that connection. This episode is interesting because they view themselves as the "humanitarians" and the "do-gooders." Hmm. I recommend listening to Act One. Interesting perspective.
On a similar note, a recent article came out about the law in Alabama and how Latinos are fleeing that state like crazy. So the farms and factories are now giving jobs to "Americans" ~ which was the goal of the law, right? Give those jobs to Americans. But actually Americans don't want those jobs. This article is very interesting.
Immigrants have long held jobs that "we" don't want to do, and there's so much work for them... farm work... cleaning... de-heading chickens... roofing in Florida... According to the article linked above, the work is too hard, too long, too much for Americans and those Latino immigrant workers were the best to fill those positions ~ hard working, accept low pay, don't complain. Granted there's some aprovechando going on there, taking advantage of undocumented status to pay them low wages and work long hours, but I think it goes to show that we do have a culture of work in this country that we want immigrants to do.
~~
Lastly, got a helpful email from Rights Action about how to be a part of the Occupy Wall Street gig (I heart Rights Action, good peeps). I'm definitely part of the 99%, obviously. I feel pretty far away from what's going on up there. I don't think there are any actions down here (maybe too much else going on here... the rains... upcoming run-off election), but I did make a donation through the link in this article because I'm down with this movement.
10 WAYS TO SUPPORT THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT
By Sarah van Gelder, YES! Magazine
October 23, 2011
http://www.alternet.org/story/152833/10_ways_to_support_the_occupy_movement
The #OccupyWallStreet movement (www.occupywallst.org) continues to spread with more than 1,500 sites. More and more people are speaking up for a society that works for the 99 percent, not just the 1 percent.
Here are 10 recommendations from the YES! Magazine staff for ways to build the power and momentum of this movement. Only two of them involve sleeping outside:
1. Show up at the occupied space near you.
Use this link (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/04/1022722/-Occupy-Wall-Street:-List-and-map-of-over-200-US-solidarity-events-and-Facebook%C2%A0pages) to find the Facebook page of an occupation near you. If you can, bring a tent or tarp and sleeping bag, and stay. Or just come for a few hours. Talk to people, participate in a General Assembly, hold a sign, help serve food. Learn about the new world being created in the occupied spaces.
2. Start your own occupation.
Use this Meetup site (http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/). Or call together friends, members of your faith group, school, or community group. Reach out to people from parts of your community you don't normally work with. Unexpected alliances keep the movement from getting labeled as partisan or representing only some people.
3. Support those who are occupying.
Most sites need food, warm clothes, blankets, tarps, sleeping bags, communications gear, and money. Many need people to do loads of laundry, to help with medical care, to provide legal support, to serve food, and to spread the word. Some people call in pizza orders from nearby vendors. Support the folks at Liberty Square in New York here (http://www.nycga.net/how-to-help/), or check in with your local occupiers to see what they need.
4. Speak out. Get into the debates and the teach-ins.
Many occupation sites have workshops and discussions on critical issues of our time. Get into the discussion. Bring your expertise and reading materials to share. YES! Magazine is offering free copies of the current New Livelihood issue to occupied sites (request them by emailing JobsIssue@yesmagazine.org). Bring the discussions to other groups you are part of. Listen to perspectives you haven't heard before. This process represents a critical, but under-reported side of the movement: People are shifting from being passive, frustrated observers of politics to active, powerful players. Instead of waiting for our leaders to do the right thing, people from all walks of life are becoming leaders. It makes us unstoppable.
5. Share your story.
Post how you're part of the 99 percent on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, or in print. Through this movement, people are discovering others who are also losing jobs and homes, who are overwhelmed by debt or working a dead-end job. Through this sharing, humiliation turns into compassion and self-respect. And it builds understanding of the sources and the impacts of our crisis: A Wall Street system that funnels wealth to the top 1 percent is leaving the rest of us behind.
Community plus insight makes us powerful.
6. Be the media.
Show up with your video recorder, camera phone, or laptop and share the stories of the occupation. You can download a selection of posters (http://www.occupytogether.org/downloadable-posters/) donated by graphic designers and spread them around. Highlight the human dimension of the protests. It is harder for critics to disparage a movement when people see the faces of those involved.
7. Name the meaning of this moment.
What will make the world better for the 99 percent? How has the power of the 1 percent gotten in the way of your hopes and dreams? Make a sign, write a blog, update your Facebook page, or speak out on the issue that means the most to you. Include the phrase, "I am the 99 percent."
8. Insist that public officials treat the occupations with respect.
The eviction of the Liberty Square occupation on Wall Street was averted by massive public resistance from those in the square and from others. Other occupations also need support. The 99 percent don't have the money, political access, and media empires of the 1 percent; the occupations are one of the few ways we are building power. Ask your local officials to respect people's right to assembly.
9. Study and teach nonviolent techniques.
There are many examples of outside provocateurs who spark violent incidents that can discredit nonviolent movements such as this. The corporate media is hungry for violent images. (There's already been an example of an admitted provocateur from the right-wing "American Spectator" who provoked pepper spraying at the National Air & Space Museum). Learn how to lovingly and firmly interrupt and contain violence, and teach what you know. Here are some resources (http://usdayofrage.org/resources-for-non-violent-civil-disobedience-menu/non-violent-civil-disobedience-training-talks.html).
10. Be resilient.
This movement is here for the long term. Some efforts may fade because of cold weather or harsh police responses. Others may self-destruct through faulty process or violent outbreaks. The movement may be idealistic, but it won't be ideal. Don't get disillusioned; the demand for a society that serves the 99 percent won't go away. The movement may morph, but it has become unstoppable.
Help it evolve.
The genie is out of the bottle. People will no longer accept the systematic transfer of wealth and power from we the people to the 1 percent. In this remarkable, leaderless movement, each one of the 99 percent who gets involved helps shape history.
Sarah van Gelder is Executive Editor of YES! Magazine (http://www.yesmagazine.org/).
© 2011 YES! Magazine All rights reserved.
View this story online at: http://www.alternet.org/story/152833/
By Sarah van Gelder, YES! Magazine
October 23, 2011
http://www.alternet.org/story/152833/10_ways_to_support_the_occupy_movement
The #OccupyWallStreet movement (www.occupywallst.org) continues to spread with more than 1,500 sites. More and more people are speaking up for a society that works for the 99 percent, not just the 1 percent.
Here are 10 recommendations from the YES! Magazine staff for ways to build the power and momentum of this movement. Only two of them involve sleeping outside:
1. Show up at the occupied space near you.
Use this link (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/04/1022722/-Occupy-Wall-Street:-List-and-map-of-over-200-US-solidarity-events-and-Facebook%C2%A0pages) to find the Facebook page of an occupation near you. If you can, bring a tent or tarp and sleeping bag, and stay. Or just come for a few hours. Talk to people, participate in a General Assembly, hold a sign, help serve food. Learn about the new world being created in the occupied spaces.
2. Start your own occupation.
Use this Meetup site (http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/). Or call together friends, members of your faith group, school, or community group. Reach out to people from parts of your community you don't normally work with. Unexpected alliances keep the movement from getting labeled as partisan or representing only some people.
3. Support those who are occupying.
Most sites need food, warm clothes, blankets, tarps, sleeping bags, communications gear, and money. Many need people to do loads of laundry, to help with medical care, to provide legal support, to serve food, and to spread the word. Some people call in pizza orders from nearby vendors. Support the folks at Liberty Square in New York here (http://www.nycga.net/how-to-help/), or check in with your local occupiers to see what they need.
4. Speak out. Get into the debates and the teach-ins.
Many occupation sites have workshops and discussions on critical issues of our time. Get into the discussion. Bring your expertise and reading materials to share. YES! Magazine is offering free copies of the current New Livelihood issue to occupied sites (request them by emailing JobsIssue@yesmagazine.org). Bring the discussions to other groups you are part of. Listen to perspectives you haven't heard before. This process represents a critical, but under-reported side of the movement: People are shifting from being passive, frustrated observers of politics to active, powerful players. Instead of waiting for our leaders to do the right thing, people from all walks of life are becoming leaders. It makes us unstoppable.
5. Share your story.
Post how you're part of the 99 percent on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, or in print. Through this movement, people are discovering others who are also losing jobs and homes, who are overwhelmed by debt or working a dead-end job. Through this sharing, humiliation turns into compassion and self-respect. And it builds understanding of the sources and the impacts of our crisis: A Wall Street system that funnels wealth to the top 1 percent is leaving the rest of us behind.
Community plus insight makes us powerful.
6. Be the media.
Show up with your video recorder, camera phone, or laptop and share the stories of the occupation. You can download a selection of posters (http://www.occupytogether.org/downloadable-posters/) donated by graphic designers and spread them around. Highlight the human dimension of the protests. It is harder for critics to disparage a movement when people see the faces of those involved.
7. Name the meaning of this moment.
What will make the world better for the 99 percent? How has the power of the 1 percent gotten in the way of your hopes and dreams? Make a sign, write a blog, update your Facebook page, or speak out on the issue that means the most to you. Include the phrase, "I am the 99 percent."
8. Insist that public officials treat the occupations with respect.
The eviction of the Liberty Square occupation on Wall Street was averted by massive public resistance from those in the square and from others. Other occupations also need support. The 99 percent don't have the money, political access, and media empires of the 1 percent; the occupations are one of the few ways we are building power. Ask your local officials to respect people's right to assembly.
9. Study and teach nonviolent techniques.
There are many examples of outside provocateurs who spark violent incidents that can discredit nonviolent movements such as this. The corporate media is hungry for violent images. (There's already been an example of an admitted provocateur from the right-wing "American Spectator" who provoked pepper spraying at the National Air & Space Museum). Learn how to lovingly and firmly interrupt and contain violence, and teach what you know. Here are some resources (http://usdayofrage.org/resources-for-non-violent-civil-disobedience-menu/non-violent-civil-disobedience-training-talks.html).
10. Be resilient.
This movement is here for the long term. Some efforts may fade because of cold weather or harsh police responses. Others may self-destruct through faulty process or violent outbreaks. The movement may be idealistic, but it won't be ideal. Don't get disillusioned; the demand for a society that serves the 99 percent won't go away. The movement may morph, but it has become unstoppable.
Help it evolve.
The genie is out of the bottle. People will no longer accept the systematic transfer of wealth and power from we the people to the 1 percent. In this remarkable, leaderless movement, each one of the 99 percent who gets involved helps shape history.
Sarah van Gelder is Executive Editor of YES! Magazine (http://www.yesmagazine.org/).
© 2011 YES! Magazine All rights reserved.
View this story online at: http://www.alternet.org/story/152833/
~~
Pretty long post today, huh? Yep, 100% procrastinating on a paper due today. Guilty.
Pretty long post today, huh? Yep, 100% procrastinating on a paper due today. Guilty.
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