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Guatemala’s Descent into Violence

Virginia Garrard‐Burnett

in Terror in the Land of the Holy Spirit: Guatemala Under General Efrain Rios Montt, 1982-1983

This chapter provides a background to the violence of the early 1980s. It explores the evolution of the revolutionary Left in the 1960s and 1970s. This chapter also explores the development of a ... More

This chapter provides a background to the violence of the early 1980s. It explores the evolution of the revolutionary Left in the 1960s and 1970s. This chapter also explores the development of a well‐defined counterinsurgency movement in Guatemala and its methodical use of terror as a means of controlling the population and staunching the growth of the Marxist opposition. This chapter suggests that by the late 1970s, the ideology of counterinsurgency had degenerated into a chaotic culture of violence that repudiated the authority of the state. Much of the material for this chapter comes from secondary sources. However, it also utilizes primary sources from personal papers of Mario Payeras, who was a founder and intellectual leader of the Ejército Guerrillero de los Pobres, which have only recently become available for scholarly use.Less

Introduction: Globalizing Latin America’s Revolutionary Left; Historiography, Approaches, and Context

Tanya Harmer and Alberto Martín Álvarez

in Toward a Global History of Latin America's Revolutionary Left

An introduction to Latin America’s Revolutionary Left, global history, and questions for future research on Latin America’s revolutionary history in a global perspective. Why is it that Latin America ... More

An introduction to Latin America’s Revolutionary Left, global history, and questions for future research on Latin America’s revolutionary history in a global perspective. Why is it that Latin America has not featured more prominently in global history to date? What are some of the big gaps in our knowledge? What do global perspectives offer?Less

Introduction

Tanya Harmer

in Beatriz Allende: A Revolutionary Life in Cold War Latin America

An introduction to who Beatriz Allende was and the themes present throughout her life. Following a discussion of the methodological opportunities and challenges posed by biography and microhistories ... More

An introduction to who Beatriz Allende was and the themes present throughout her life. Following a discussion of the methodological opportunities and challenges posed by biography and microhistories of an individual life, this introduction discusses periodization of reform and and revolution in Chile; youth in Latin America’s long sixties; the revolutionary left; and the history of revolutionary women and gender. In doing so, it suggests a new way of examining the Cold War as lived experience.Less

The Brazilian Far Left, Cuba, and the Sino-Soviet Split, 1963: New International Evidence on a Discordant “Struggle for Ascendancy”

James G. Hershberg

in Toward a Global History of Latin America's Revolutionary Left

This chapter examines the international aspects of the struggle on the Brazilian Revolutionary Left in the early 1960s, against the backdrops of domestic political instability, the Cold War, and the ... More

This chapter examines the international aspects of the struggle on the Brazilian Revolutionary Left in the early 1960s, against the backdrops of domestic political instability, the Cold War, and the Sino-Soviet split. It explores two rivalries on the Brazilian Revolutionary Left, both pitting the established, pro-Moscow Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) and its venerable leader, Luis Carlos Prestes—who supported Nikita Khrushchev’s line of struggling for power through peaceful, political means—against rivals who favored armed revolution: a dissident breakaway faction, the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB), which embraced Beijing’s side in the Sino-Soviet spat and sought Mao Zedong’s backing against Prestes and the PCB; and the Peasant Leagues in Brazil’s northeast, whose leader, Francisco Julião, admired the Cuban Revolution. In early 1963, both Prestes and Julião visited Havana to court Fidel Castro; and rival PCB and PCdoB delegations visited China, seeking Mao’s endorsement. The dispute over Brazil’s correct revolutionary path mirrored the larger rift in the communist world. Drawing on an array of archival sources—Brazilian, U.S., Chinese, Russian, British, Czech, Hungarian, East German, Polish, and more—the chapter reveals a previously unknown dimension of the intersection, and interaction, between internal Brazilian and global revolutionary left.Less

Communism and the Spanish Revolution July–August 1936

StanLey G. Payne

in The Spanish Civil War, the Soviet Union, and Communism

This chapter discusses the military rebellion that began the Spanish Civil War, which was a preemptive strike by approximately half of the army, led by a diverse cadre of officers, primarily of ... More

This chapter discusses the military rebellion that began the Spanish Civil War, which was a preemptive strike by approximately half of the army, led by a diverse cadre of officers, primarily of middle and junior rank. Initially, the rebellion sought a new, more conservative, and authoritarian republic that would put an end to the growing anarchy, the pervasive misgovernment or lack of government by the left Republicans, and the mounting threat from a profoundly disunified but ever-expanding and violent revolutionary left. The insurgents would later release forged documentation in an effort to show that the Comintern planned to take over the government no later than August. The evidence is clear that the Comintern intended to continue the Popular Front formula indefinitely and had no such immediate plan or timetable in mind.Less

The Influence of the United States in Chilean Politics

Sebastián Hurtado-Torres

in The Gathering Storm: Eduardo Frei's Revolution in Liberty and Chile's Cold War

This concluding chapter reflects on the influence of the United States in Chilean politics. Since the dynamics of Chilean politics replicated very closely the ideological divide of the global Cold ... More

This concluding chapter reflects on the influence of the United States in Chilean politics. Since the dynamics of Chilean politics replicated very closely the ideological divide of the global Cold War, the overarching goal of the U.S. strategy toward Chile between 1964 and 1970 was to keep the Marxist Left from taking power. Arguably, the most important part of that strategy was the considerable support provided to the reformist political project of the Christian Democratic Party, as it constituted a viable alternative to the growing appeal of the revolutionary Left and offered a path toward economic and social modernization that coincided with the ideological outlook of the Johnson administration's foreign policy. Despite an imbalance of power, the U.S. foreign policy apparatus did not determine the motivations or intentions of the Chilean political actors with which it established relationships, nor did it shape the political debates on which the U.S. interests in Chile could be at stake. The United States established itself as a relevant and even powerful informal actor in Chilean politics but only as an ally of forces whose interests and goals, though convergent with U.S. interests, were independent.Less

The Influence of Latin America’s Revolutionary Left in Europe: The Role of Left-Wing Editors

Eduardo Rey Tristán

in Toward a Global History of Latin America's Revolutionary Left

This chapter analyzes the diffusion of ideas that originated in Cuba and were developed by Latin America’s revolutionary groups during the sixties. Specifically, it examines the role played by key ... More

This chapter analyzes the diffusion of ideas that originated in Cuba and were developed by Latin America’s revolutionary groups during the sixties. Specifically, it examines the role played by key left-wing publishers in Europe: notably the Italian Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, France’s François Masperò, Germany’s Klaus Wagenbach, and Switzerland’s Nils Andersson. The chapter reflects on the dynamics of political-ideological diffusion within the third wave of international political violence, as well as on some of the actors who were key to this process taking place. The chapter is part of a broader reflection on the transnational dimensions of revolutionary violence in the 1960s and 1970s, and the links established between the two shores of the Atlantic.Less

Reform and Radicalization

Tanya Harmer

in Beatriz Allende: A Revolutionary Life in Cold War Latin America

Chapter four examines the emergence of a revolutionary left in Chile in the first years of Eduardo Frei’s presidency. Although this process would not dominate left-wing politics at a national level ... More

Chapter four examines the emergence of a revolutionary left in Chile in the first years of Eduardo Frei’s presidency. Although this process would not dominate left-wing politics at a national level until later in 1960s, it resonated soon after Allende’s 1964 electoral defeat, influenced both by reformist projects and repressive efforts to contain them. By 1966, Beatriz was part of a weak but emergent revolutionary wing of the Chilean Socialist Party, inspired by local circumstances and international influences. These first years of the Frei government were dynamic, and productive. Beatriz and her cohort of medical students and socialist militants came into direct contact with the state’s new approach to healthcare, family planning, women, agricultural reform, and poverty. Beatriz benefitted from, and was shaped by, the reformist environment she inhabited, emerging like many of the radical left as a product of combined frustrations and opportunities it provided. By 1967, Beatriz had her first formal job in a community health center, epitomizing many of the Christian Democrat’s reformist goals. Closer to home, she had also fallen in love and married a young Socialist Party militant, Renato Julio, involved in effervescent student politics.Less

“Not picketing in front of bra factories”: Marxism, feminism, and the Weather Underground

Sinead McEneaney

in Marxism and America: New Appraisals

Created in 1969 out of ideological discord within the Students for a Democratic Society, Weatherman typified the disillusion of the late-stage New Left, which grappled with how to consolidate ... More

Created in 1969 out of ideological discord within the Students for a Democratic Society, Weatherman typified the disillusion of the late-stage New Left, which grappled with how to consolidate competing approaches to gender inequalities, the Vietnam War, the conservative turn in domestic politics, and the problem of imperialism. Tensions quickly emerged within Weatherman between its Marxist ideological leanings and the expectation that a group fronted by high-profile women leaders might have more fully embraced the cause of women’s liberation. After four decades, key Weather activists have sought to redefine Weatherman as feminist. However, contemporary critics—even within Weather itself—highlighted the leadership’s inability to see the possibility of a happy marriage between Marxism and women’s liberation, and thus to contribute to the shaping of what we now call intersectional feminism. This chapter examines the ways in which Weatherman deployed Marxist ideas and language to justify their antagonism to hegemonic feminism, and argues that the dismissal of feminism as “self-indulgent bullshit” can help to explain the group’s slide into irrelevance.Less

Afterword: The Americas, North and South

Van Gosse

in Toward a Global History of Latin America's Revolutionary Left

A brief comparative history of the similarities and differences between Latin America’s Revolutionary Left and left-wing groups in the United States with suggestions for future research.

Conclusion

in The Political Trajectory of J. T. Murphy

J. T. Murphy died of a cerebral haemorrhage on May 13, 1965 at the age of seventy-six. In his lifetime, he had been only one of a generation of autodidact Marxists in early twentieth-century Britain. ... More

J. T. Murphy died of a cerebral haemorrhage on May 13, 1965 at the age of seventy-six. In his lifetime, he had been only one of a generation of autodidact Marxists in early twentieth-century Britain. An extraordinary worker-intellectual, Murphy combined an avid theoretical enquiry with a long-standing commitment to the working-class movement. He was a leading figure in the fight against capitalism and his political trajectory, characterised by his transition from syndicalism to communism, from left reformism to popular frontism to anti-Marxism, mirrors some of the strengths and weaknesses of the British revolutionary left. Undoubtedly, Murphy's primary legacy was his formulation of revolutionary strategy and tactics within the trade unions. This chapter discusses some of the main general themes related to Murphy's life and politics.Less

Jefe de la Plaza: The Rise of Augusto Pinochet

James Lockhart

in Chile, the CIA and the Cold War: A Transatlantic Perspective

This culminating chapter examines the rise of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, an anticommunist officer who became dictator of Chile from 1973 to 1990. It assesses the coup that overthrew the Allende ... More

This culminating chapter examines the rise of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, an anticommunist officer who became dictator of Chile from 1973 to 1990. It assesses the coup that overthrew the Allende administration in five parts: Allende's politics, the professional officer corps' politics, the relationship between the professional officer corps and their senior commanders, Pinochet's decision to commit to the coup, and the involvement of foreign military and intelligence services, including the CIA and KGB.Less

The Cold War and Its Transnational Imprint in the Americas

Luis Roniger

in Transnational Perspectives on Latin America: The Entwined Histories of a Multi-State Region

This chapter addresses the geopolitics of the Cold War and its transnational imprint on Latin America. It starts by discussing the rise of the U.S. to hemispheric hegemony, and analyzes U.S. policies ... More

This chapter addresses the geopolitics of the Cold War and its transnational imprint on Latin America. It starts by discussing the rise of the U.S. to hemispheric hegemony, and analyzes U.S. policies and their interplay with domestic constellations of power. Interested in curtailing the advance of the revolutionary Left and radical insurgent movements, the region witnessed a forceful takeover of power and the adoption of transnational counter-insurgency operations, such as Operation Condor, that undermined the rule of law and produced atrocious records of crimes against humanity. The chapter offers an overview of the impact of this geopolitical configuration on Latin American societies, including the controversial role of the School of the Americas, the prevailing doctrines of National Security and the organic conception of nations that led to a genocidal turn in the context of the Cold War.Less

The KGB and Ireland: British fear Soviet embassy in Dublin, Official IRA declares ceasefire, Ireland joins EEC

John Mulqueen

in 'An Alien Ideology': Cold War Perceptions of the Irish Republican Left

A potential espionage threat to Britain from Dublin-based Soviet agents arose as the establishment of Irish-Soviet relations became a probability. This chapter examines perceptions of the ... More

A potential espionage threat to Britain from Dublin-based Soviet agents arose as the establishment of Irish-Soviet relations became a probability. This chapter examines perceptions of the communist-influenced Official republican movement as the Troubles escalated in 1971-2, with officials expressing fears for the stability of the Dublin government – the ‘Irish Cuba’. British and American officials used a Cold War prism here. The Russians could be expected to exploit the northern crisis, the American ambassador warned, using the Official movement as their ‘natural vehicle’. Following Bloody Sunday, when British paratroopers killed thirteen unarmed civilians, the British prime minister, Ted Heath, warned Dublin that the Soviets would cause as much trouble as they could, using the Official IRA as a proxy. The Irish revolutionary left too used a Cold War lens when opposing Ireland’s membership of the European Economic Community (EEC): it would lock Ireland into a NATO-dominated bloc.Less