Key Terms and Concepts from Latin American History Lecture

This set of flashcards addresses key vocabulary terms and concepts discussed in the lecture regarding Latin American history and U.S. foreign policy.

La Reconquista

Reconquering formerly Spanish territory from Muslim/Moorish populations.

Mayorazgo

Form of Spanish land ownership where property is made legally indivisible and handed down from generation to generation through eldest son.

Joint Stock Company

Investors who pooled resources to fund an enterprise and share profits.

Speculator

Investors who purchase assets (land) for short periods of time to profit in price changes.

Neoliberalism

mass sell-off of public assets and the privatization of basic government services, shifting control of economic resources from the public to the private sector.

Maquiladora

An export processing zone that is typically tariff/tax free and operates beyond local environmental and labor laws.

Free Trade

Free exchange of goods and/or services across borders without tariffs or restrictions.

Pink Tide Movement

Latin American governments shift away from neoliberal economic policies and US economic exploitation beginning with Hugo Chavez in Venezuela.

Banana Republic

Politically unstable small countries whose economy is dependent on exporting one resource and controlled by foreign multinational corporations.

Gunboat Diplomacy

Threat of military power/intervention to achieve foreign policy results.

Dollar Diplomacy

Use of financial power to extend international influence.

Filibustering

Private citizens/mercenaries invade/Spanish held territory causing disorder, which leads to U.S. government responses and territorial expansion.

NAFTA

Agreement aiming to eliminate trade barriers between Mexico, Canada, and the U.S.

Important Dates: 3 important events and their dates (year) that we have discussed within the following 3 time periods: 

1490-1800: 

• 1492 - End of La Reconquista and Columbus arrives in Caribbean

• 1515 - Spanish arrive to what is now FL

• 1607 - First English colony established in what is now Jamestown, VA 

• 1776 - US declares Independence

1800-1900: 

• 1803 - Louisiana Purchase

• 1810 - Latin American Independence wars (Mexico, Venezuela, Bolivia…)

• 1819 - Adams-Onís Treaty - US gains Florida

• 1823 - Monroe Doctrine written by John Quincy Adams

• 1898 - Spanish American War which results in US gets Guam, PR, and Philippines

• 1848 - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo where US gains alot of Mexican territory (CA, Texas, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico

1900-Today 

1903 - Panama gains independence from Colombia

1904 - Panama canal construction begins (takes 10 years)

1901/1906/1912 - US occupies Cuba

1916 - US occupies DR

1952 - PR becomes a commonwealth

1927 - Ocotal Massacre in Nicaragua

1994 - NAFTA & Zapatista Uprising & Mexican Peso crisis

1998 - Pink Tide Movement (Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, Bolivia, Brazil, Honduras)

Differences between Spanish and English colonization and why they matter to González. (Chapter 1)

CHURCH (RACE/SEX)

Spanish - highly involved in colonial administration, physical construction, financial, politically

English - wasn’t that significant, colonists were looking for limited religious freedom

RACE 

Spanish - racial mixing (conversion), combined with a strong racial hierarchy (e.g. casta system)

English - segregation, displacement and genocide of Indigenous peoples 

LAND/POLITICS

Spanish - Mayorazgo tied land to family which was difficult to transfer/sell land 

English - land speculation made it easy to buy/sell land for profit quickly, joint stock companies (group of investors who pool resources to purchase assets and land for profit)

Filibustering and its role in expanding US imperialism (Chapter 2)

Filibustering - private citizens/mercenaries that go invade/Spanish held territory/cause disorder/declare themselves as rulers → → Spanish gov’t responds → US gov’t responds →

Massive territorial expansion for US

Tactic US tries in non-contiguous areas of the U.S 

Major US foreign policy strategy in LA for much of the 20th century (Chapter 3)

Goals of NAFTA vs. actual outcomes of NAFTA for Mexico and the US (generally speaking) (Chapter 13)

Goals:

• Remove Trade Barriers: The primary aim was to eliminate all tariff barriers between Mexico, Canada, and the United States by 2010.

• Promote Prosperity: Proponents, including President Bill Clinton, promised a new era of prosperity for all participating countries.

• Access to Cheap Labor: For the U.S., a major goal was to secure access to cheap labor in Latin America without the burden of trade tariffs.

• Create Manufacturing Zones: The U.S. sought to establish export-oriented manufacturing zones, known as maquiladoras, primarily to serve U.S. market needs.

Actual Outcomes:

• Economic Dislocation in Mexico: The sudden influx of foreign capital allowed investors to "gobble up" key portions of Mexico's manufacturing, agricultural, and banking industries.

• Unemployment and Business Failure: Small Mexican manufacturers were driven out of business, leading to millions of people becoming dislocated or unemployed.

• Increased Migration: The high unemployment rates in Mexico encouraged citizens to migrate elsewhere, specifically to the U.S., to find work.

• Increased Dependency: Mexico became more economically dependent on the U.S.; consequently, when the Great Recession hit the U.S., it impacted Mexican workers significantly harder.

• Persistence of Poverty: Despite the "free trade" model, roughly half of Mexico's population continued to live in poverty twenty years after the agreement.

Central argument of Harvest of Empire and how it is demonstrated in each chapter.

Central Argument: The central argument of Harvest of Empire is that U.S. expansion was not a "natural" movement across a frontier, but a deliberate "hemispheric empire" built through a combination of policy, violence, and ideology. González argues that the large-scale Latino migration to the U.S. in the 20th century is a direct consequence (the "harvest") of earlier U.S. military and economic interventions in Latin America.

Demonstration by Chapter:

• Chapter 1 (Conquerors and Victims): Demonstrates how the differing colonial legacies of Spain and England—specifically regarding race (caste hierarchy vs. exclusion) and land (family-tied mayorazgo vs. profit-driven speculation)—shaped the distinct social and political foundations of the Americas.

• Chapter 2 (The Manifest Destiny): Shows how the U.S. used "two-faced" neutrality and filibustering (private illegal invasions) to trigger official government annexations of Spanish territory, framing imperial expansion as a "civilizing mission".

• Chapter 3 (Banana Republics and Bonds): Illustrates the shift from territorial annexation to "gunboat diplomacy" and financial domination. By deforming Caribbean economies to serve U.S. corporations, the U.S. created the economic instability that pushed large waves of Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Dominican migrants to the mainland.

• Chapter 13 (The Rise of Free Trade): Connects modern neoliberal policies and NAFTA to continued migration pressures. It demonstrates how globalized free trade prioritizes cheap labor and capital mobility, often destroying local industries and displacing workers, which reinforces the cycle of migration to the U.S..