Recommended Reading

 

Latin American Struggles:
Planet of Slums – Mike Davis
Hegemony or Survival – Noam Chomsky
Encountering Development – Arturo Escobar
Globalization and Its Discontents – Joseph Stiglitz
The Take (DVD) &&& The Shock Doctrine – Naomi Klein
No One is Illegal – Justin Akers Chacon and Mike Davis

Empire’s Workshop: Latin America, The United States, and the Rise of the New
Imperialsim
by Greg Grandin, 2006. THIS IS A MUST READ. This is the best
book on Latin America that I have ever read. Greg is a Latin American History
Professor at NYU. This book is very readable and ties together many threads to
show the effects of US intervention.

Open Veins of Latin America: 5 Centuries of Pillage of a Continent by Eduardo
Galeano, 1973. This book is a classic and demonstrates the devastation of
colonialism.

The Chavez Code: Cracking US Intervention in Venezuela by Eva
Golinger, 2007. Eva is a brilliant lawyer. She demonstrates in great detail how the US has tried to take down and corrode the Chavez government through various
organizations in Venezuela and through the “normal” US channels, US Aid, and
also organizations funded by both the Democratic and Republican parties.

The Battle of Venezuela by Michael McCaughan, 2004. Michael presents a very
readable account of Venezuela before the Chavez election and the period of the
Chavez administration up to 2004.

Bridge of Courage: Life Stories of the Guatamalan Companeros and Companeras by Jennifer Harbury, 1994. In this book, Jennifer presents very
readable interviews with Guatemalan guerillas in the war. By reading this book,
I found out what putting your life on the line really means. I found out what it
means to be a companero or companera. I found out what the definition of
courage really is.

Bitter Fruit: The Story of the American Coup in Guatemala by Stephan
Shlesinger and Stephen Kinzer, 1982. This book details the CIA overthrow of
Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz in 1954. The US took this illegal action
because Arbenz| was not following the standard US line, particularly in the land
reform laws which re-distributed idle U. S. Corporation, United Fruit Company
lands to peasants. One finds out that some top U. S. government officials had
very close ties to United Fruit.

Zapatista Struggle:

Harvey, Neil (1998). The Chiapas Rebellion: The Struggle for Land and Democracy. Duke University Press.

Subcomandante Marcos – Our word is our weapon