Knowledge Is Our Unused Weapon: How Americans Can Save the World

I’ve heard it argued that the problem with Americans is the demand for immediate fulfillment and material goods that permeates our society. We’ve been charged with being self-centered people, unaware of the world around us. Though there may be some truth to the statement on the whole, I disagree with the last point. Americans are acutely aware of global issues. Did you not see the outpouring of support for Haiti in January or the “Stop Genocide in Sudan” shirts that were all the rage a few years ago? The problem is not a lack of awareness, nor is it a lack of drive to change the world. Rather, it is a lack of willingness to dive below the pop culture surface and explore the roots of the world’s problems. For it is only when we completely understand where we belong on the global scale that we can hope to truly help those less fortunate than ourselves.

If we’re going to change this view of Americans as ignorant global citizens, I recommend we begin in our own backyard. I agree that it’s much easier to join the social movements to better situations in far off locations like Sudan, Uganda and Tibet than to take a look at our close neighbors in places like Latin America. It’s awkward to look at American involvement so close to home, but the reality is the U.S. has a long history of extending its influence into the southern reaches of our hemisphere. During the Cold War, interventions were performed under the guise of defending democracy and battling the evils of communism. The idea of defending democracy is an interesting one, though, considering how the U.S. undermined numerous democratically elected governments throughout the 1970s and up through relatively recent history.

Nicaragua is a nearly perfect case study in American meddling. The U.S.-installed Somoza family ruled Nicaragua in military dictatorial style from 1937-1979, when they were removed from power by the Sandinista National Liberation Front, named for Augusto Sandino, a 1930s revolutionary who was assassinated for opposing the US and Somoza rule. After stabilizing the country, the Sandinistas held democratic elections beginning in 1984 (which were found to be free and fair by nations such as Canada and Ireland, though the US disputed their findings). While this was happening, the Reagan Administration and CIA were secretly backing the Contras, a guerilla force seeking to depose the Sandinista government. The US Congress voted to stop supporting the Contras in 1983, but Reagan continued to fund them by secretly selling weapons to Iran and then funneling the proceeds to the Contras (events which, upon exposure, became known as the Iran-Contra Affair). The Sandinistas were voted out of office in 1990, a result they chose to respect. Nicaragua has been involved with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) since 1991. The IMF has attempted to restructure the country’s economy through structural adjustment measures such as the encouragement of export-focused industries and reduced state spending. At present, Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the Americas, following Haiti. Nearly 80 percent of the population lives on less than $2 a day and 40 percent of the economy rests in the hands of multinational corporations.

I’ve been on numerous mission trips to Latin America, and the reactions I see from my fellow travelers never differ. There’s the initial shock and amazement followed by an intense drive to do something. Which is, of course, the entire point of traveling all the way from our homes in the cushy United States to these oft ignored corners of the continent. It’s a chance to open our eyes and see how the less fortunate members of humanity live.

When we return from the perspective-altering journey, we’ll tell our friends about what we saw. They will be amazed and we will discuss how we really ought to do something – and isn’t all that poverty simply terrible? We’ll nod and sip our coffees and carry on with our lives. Rarely do I hear of anyone attempting to learn about why such extreme social stratification exists. It’s as if we see the horrible conditions and accept them as a part of the world over which we have zero control.

It is there, however, that we are wrong. It is our acceptance that allows these problems to continue. Really, we should be fighting these conditions with our knowledge of the truth of the histories of these regions. Armed with the knowledge of why such situations exist, we can pressure our government and international agencies to change the big picture, while we continue to change the small.

For a more thorough overview of the history of Nicaragua, check out the BBC’s Country Profile page: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1225283.stm

For more information about the IMF and their role in the economies of developing nations in Latin America and elsewhere in the world, check out their website: http://www.imf.org/external/index.htm