South and Central America
Regional strike against mining project fuels divisions within Peru’s crisis-ridden government
By Armando Cruz and Cesar Uco, 22 August 2019
Thousands of people joined the strike, confronting military police, blocking the Pan-American highway and the streets of Arequipa’s capital city and shutting down a major port.
Trump calls for naval blockade of Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 20 August 2019
The US president’s demand for a military option reflects growing desperation in Washington over the failure of its regime-change operation.
Bolivia’s biggest mine and public health sector go on strike
By Andrea Lobo, 20 August 2019
Miners in San Cristobal, striking doctors and the entire, restive working class in Bolivia are coming into conflict with the Morales government, MAS and the trade unions.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon hails Mexican government as embodiment of “citizens’ revolution”
By Will Morrow, 20 August 2019
Mélenchon’s hailing of the AMLO government speaks volumes about what type of government he would lead, were he to win the presidential elections in 2022.
Venezuelan military court jails union official as working-class opposition grows
By Andrea Lobo, 17 August 2019
The indictment of Rubén González is part of an attempt to criminalize growing social opposition among workers and the impoverished masses.
Argentina’s stock market crashes after Macri loses pre-election poll
By Rafael Azul, 14 August 2019
The market crash shows international finance capital’s concern that the vote reflects massive social opposition to austerity regimes.
Far-right government elected in Guatemala
By Andrea Lobo, 14 August 2019
Marked by low participation and mass protests, the vote was overshadowed by the popular outrage against the “third safe country” agreement imposed by Trump.
Brazil’s Bolsonaro threatens Glenn Greenwald, ratchets up fascist rants
By Miguel Andrade, 13 August 2019
Bolsonaro is engaged in the buildup of a fascist movement based on the security forces, and feels emboldened by the wide consensus in ruling circles around his economic agenda.
Washington orders international embargo on Venezuela, threatens invasion
By Andrea Lobo, 7 August 2019
US envoy Elliott Abrams declared: “If you told George Bush Sr. in 1988 that he would invade Panama, he would have called it madness. But two or three years later, it happened.”
Argentine teachers strike, Michigan road workers walk out, Blackjewell miners protest and BC forestry strike continues
Workers Struggles: The Americas
6 August 2019
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
US Secretary of State Pompeo announces “new era” of US-Latin America reaction
By Andrea Lobo, 25 July 2019
Pompeo boasted about extraditing Assange, while demanding greater spying, anti-immigrant crackdowns and alignment with the US drive against its geopolitical rivals.
Trade union sells out Walmart strike in Chile
By Andrea Lobo, 19 July 2019
The SIL union unilaterally imposed an agreement which achieved none of workers’ demands.
National strike against Ecuadorian government demands Assange’s freedom
By Andrea Lobo, 17 July 2019
The protests in defense of Assange and the recent five-day strike in Ecuador demonstrate that the only social basis for his liberation and the defense democratic rights is the international working class.
Bossa Nova pioneer, songwriter and musician João Gilberto dead at 88
By Hiram Lee, 13 July 2019
Together with the composer Antônio Carlos Jobim, Gilberto pioneered a “new wave” in Brazilian popular music during the mid-to-late 1950s that had a worldwide impact.
17,000 Walmart workers strike in Chile
By Andrea Lobo, 11 July 2019
The walkout is in response to mass firings and the expansion of a “multifunctional” work regime for the remaining workers.
Costa Rican public health workers strike over pay cut, government policies; truckers block highways
Workers Struggles: the Americas
9 July 2019
Three Costa Rican public health unions began strike action July 4 against government policies while Costa Rican truckers blockaded highways over imposition of a value added tax.
Amid revelations of fascist network at Customs and Border Protection
Ocasio-Cortez, other Congress members threatened by border police
By Barry Grey, 3 July 2019
The promotion of fascist elements in the immigration agencies is being directed from the White House.
US Border Patrol agents joke about immigrant deaths in secret Facebook group with 9,500 members
By George Marlowe, 2 July 2019
A report by ProPublica revealed that Border Patrol agents used a secret Facebook group to make sadistic and violent jokes about immigrants as well as members of Congress.
Chilean unions scramble to quell mass strike movement
By Andrea Lobo, 2 July 2019
The trade union bureaucracy led by the Chilean Workers United Center and its pseudo-left apologists are working to divide and end the strike movement.
Uruguay workers in one-day national strike
Workers Struggles: The Americas
2 July 2019
A June 24 strike called by the PIT-CNT trade union federation took place in the context of a worsening economic crisis that has seen continuing attacks on workers.
House Democrats give $4.6 billion for Trump’s concentration camps
Ocasio-Cortez plays critical role in ensuring passage
By Eric London, 28 June 2019
House Democrats voted for a Senate bill that exposes the critical role of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other “progressive” Democrats in facilitating Trump’s crackdown on immigrants.
Ten years since the US-backed coup in Honduras
By Bill Van Auken, 28 June 2019
While Democrats posture as defenders of immigrants, Obama, the “deporter-in-chief” presided over a coup that devastated Honduras, driving its people from the country.
Striking Chilean copper miners defy police violence
By Rafael Azul, 21 June 2019
Last Tuesday, police attacked striking copper miners at the Chuquicamata mine in Chile.
Brazilian unions sabotage one-day general strike
By Miguel Andrade, 20 June 2019
After telling workers to “stay home” during the general strike, union officials spoke in favor of the reactionary pension reform Bolsonaro sent to Congress.
Ecuadorian government gives Pentagon a base in the Galapagos
By Bill Van Auken, 18 June 2019
Inviting the Pentagon to use the world-renowned environmental site as a US aircraft carrier is of a piece with the Moreno government’s betrayal of Julian Assange.
Massive blackout affects 50 million in Argentina and Uruguay
By Rafael Azul, 18 June 2019
The Argentine electrical grid is suffering from decades of neglect, despite massive subsidies to electric utilities and substantial hikes in electricity rates.
Cuba conference tailors Trotsky to the politics of bourgeois nationalism
By Bill Van Auken, 13 June 2019
A collection of pseudo-lefts and Pabloite revisionists was invited to Havana to suppress the revolutionary content of Trotskyism.
Strikes in Chile, Costa Rica and Honduras
Teachers struggles erupt across Latin America
By Andrea Lobo, 8 June 2019
The response by the ruling class to the resistance led by teachers has been the same everywhere: the claim that there is “no money” and police state repression.
Fifty-five inmates killed in Brazilian prisons
By Gabriel Lemos, 1 June 2019
This escalating slaughter has been caused by a 300 percent increase in the prison population in the last two decades.
Venezuela tensions mount after arrest of coup leader
By Bill Van Auken, 10 May 2019
Washington continues to threaten military intervention in the oil-rich South American country.
The defense of Venezuela and the struggle for socialism in Latin America
By Bill Van Auken, 10 May 2019
We are publishing here the text of the speech to the 2019 International May Day Online Rally delivered by Bill Van Auken.
Panama election a distorted expression of growing opposition to austerity
By Andrea Lobo, 8 May 2019
The election came after a year dominated by strikes, including by teachers, construction workers and a general strike against an electricity rate hike.
In wake of Venezuela coup fiasco, US military threats mount
By Bill Van Auken, 7 May 2019
Both Secretary of State Pompeo and US puppet Juan Guaidó say that “military options” are under consideration.
In wake of Venezuela coup fiasco, US military threats mount
By Bill Van Auken, 7 May 2019
Both Secretary of State Pompeo and US puppet Juan Guaidó say that “military options” are under consideration.
German government backs attempted right-wing coup in Venezuela
By Johannes Stern, 3 May 2019
In a joint press release with the far-right Brazilian government, the German Foreign Ministry gave its unconditional backing to the criminal attempted coup in Venezuela.
Brazilian unions defend reactionary pension “reform” at May Day rally
By Miguel Andrade, 3 May 2019
With economic figures showing no sign of economic recovery, the PT and the unions are working to quell any working class movement against Bolsonaro.
Media lies in service of war for regime change in Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 3 May 2019
As top Trump administration officials make increasingly explicit military threats, the corporate media acts as a propaganda service for imperialist intervention.
Guaidó launches abortive military coup in Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 1 May 2019
By late Tuesday, there was little indication that Guaidó’s call had provoked any significant uprising within Venezuela’s military.
Former President Garcia’s suicide exposes desperate crisis of Peruvian bourgeoisie
By Armando Cruz and Cesar Uco, 27 April 2019
Top Odebrecht officials told Peruvian prosecutors that the company had bribed presidents, ministers and potential presidential candidates for nearly two decades.
US imperialism resurrects the Monroe Doctrine
By Bill Van Auken, 24 April 2019
The repeated invocation of the nearly two-century-old canon of US imperialist policy constitutes a warning that Washington is preparing for intensified military intervention in the region.
Protests force American Museum of Natural History to cancel event with Brazil’s Bolsonaro
By Miguel Andrade, 20 April 2019
In face of fierce popular reaction, the ruling elites in New York have been forced to disassociate themselves from the fascistic Brazilian president.
Conflict continues over Peruvian copper mine as peasant blockade is lifted
By Cesar Uco and Armando Cruz, 20 April 2019
The Peruvian government gave in to demands of 1,200 peasants of Fuerabamba who suspended the road blockade that for 66 days paralyzed export of copper concentrate to China
Ecuadorian police repress mass march demanding Julian Assange’s freedom
By Bill Van Auken, 18 April 2019
Called under the slogan “not one less right,” the march brought thousands into the streets of Quito where they confronted mounted police, dogs and tear gas.
Pentagon ordered to draft military plans to counter Russia and China in Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 17 April 2019
The report of active planning for US military intervention followed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s provocative visit to the Venezuelan-Colombian border on Sunday.
The reactionary role of national opportunist politics in Latin America
WSWS rejects invitation to conference of political bankrupts in Buenos Aires
By Bill Van Auken, 13 April 2019
The conference in Buenos Aires has been called to found “a new left” with “no strings attached and no constraints of any ‘holy scriptures.’”
Netanyahu embraces Brazil’s Bolsonaro during Israel visit
By Jean Shaoul, 6 April 2019
Under Netanyahu, Israel has become a pole of attraction for right-wing ideologues, ultra-nationalists and neo-fascists the world over.
New York Times laments stalled Venezuelan coup
By Bill Van Auken, 5 April 2019
The Times has a filthy record of supporting US wars for regime change and right-wing coups across the planet.
Eight miners die from toxic gases in Peru’s northern highlands
By Cesar Uco, 3 April 2019
The deaths of eight miners are the result of the ruthless drive for profits by the owners of informal mines in Peru.
Emboldened by Trump, Brazil’s Bolsonaro orders military to celebrate 1964 coup
By Miguel Andrade, 29 March 2019
Fresh from his White House reception, Bolsonaro’s fascist rhetoric expresses a consensus within wide layers of the ruling class that the military is the only force that can rule Brazil.
Tensions rise between US, Russia and China over Venezuelan coup
By Bill Van Auken, 28 March 2019
The arrival of a relative handful of Russian military personnel this week triggered a flurry of denunciations from Trump administration officials.
Officials, media call for school militarization, censorship after mass shooting in Brazilian school
By Miguel Andrade, 21 March 2019
The tragic school shooting has exposed the Brazilian establishment’s indifference to the social distress engulfing wide layers of the population.
São Paulo teachers’ union shuts down one-month strike
By our reporters, 15 March 2019
The union called an end to the strike after a clear majority of teachers voted to continue it.
Closure of Brazil Ford plant to destroy up to 27,000 jobs
By Miguel Andrade, 14 March 2019
The devastating plant closure has laid bare the abysmal economic situation in Brazil and offered yet another opportunity for the unions to spread nationalist poison.
Canada ever more deeply implicated in US-engineered coup attempt in Venezuela
By Laurent Lafrance, 14 March 2019
Like its US partner, Canadian imperialism covets Venezuela’s vast oil resources and is determined to prevent Russia, China, and other “strategic rivals” from expanding their influence in the Americas.
US withdraws embassy personnel, calling presence a “constraint” on US actions in Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 13 March 2019
With the regime change operation centered on the right-wing puppet Juan Guaidó stalling, the threat of US military intervention mounts.
Amid rising protests, Moreno government lays off thousands in Ecuador
By Cesar Uco, 12 March 2019
Some 10,000 workers have been laid off as part of an IMF deal that demands the slashing of 10 percent of the public workforce and other austerity measures.
Teachers strike wave spreads across five continents
By Eric London, 7 March 2019
From Bamako to Buenos Aires and Sacramento to São Paulo, the teachers’ strike movement shows the international character of the class struggle.
Report reveals that armed troops were mobilized to force through US aid provocation on Venezuelan border
By Bill Van Auken, 7 March 2019
The threats of armed provocations and direct US military intervention continue to mount as Trump renews an Obama-era “national emergency” decree targeting Venezuela.
The political lessons of the March 3 Free Assange rally
the Socialist Equality Party (Australia) Political Committee, 5 March 2019
The demonstration in Sydney won broad support on the basis of mobilising the working class to defend democratic rights and class war prisoners such as Julian Assange.
Guaidó returns to Venezuela for next stage of US regime-change operation
By Bill Van Auken, 5 March 2019
The US-backed “interim president” staged a five-nation tour of Latin America, shepherded by the CIA, to drum up support for the coup in Venezuela.
German Left Party congress backs imperialist campaign against Venezuela
By Johannes Stern, 5 March 2019
The Left Party’s European election congress last month sent a clear message: the bourgeoisie can rely on the Left Party’s support for war and attacks on the working class.
Heavy rains and avalanches kill dozens in Peru
By Cesar Uco, 28 February 2019
The catastrophic effects of these storms are bound up with the government’s failure to repair the damage caused two years ago.
New Cuban constitution recognizes private property
By Alexander Fangmann, 27 February 2019
The new constitution signals the preparation for an all-out assault on the Cuban working class and what remains of the social welfare measures established through the Cuban Revolution.
Pence threatens war in Venezuela at Colombia summit: “There is no turning back”
By Eric London, 26 February 2019
“All options are on the table,” Pence said in a speech that combined threats of war with denunciations of socialism.
US imperialism stages provocation on Venezuela’s borders
By Eric London, 25 February 2019
The threat of a disaster of world historic proportions looms as the US moves toward war in Venezuela.
Washington escalates military threats as Venezuela regime change falters
By Bill Van Auken, 14 February 2019
The focus of the attempt to oust the Venezuelan government is a cynical charade over the delivery of USAID relief supplies across the country’s borders.
Mass protests shut down Haiti
By John Marion, 14 February 2019
The protests, now called Pays Lock (Country Lock), have taken on the character of a general strike with the aim of shutting down the country until President Moïse resigns.
Brazil’s Workers Party praises imperialist officials and Brazilian military involved in Venezuela regime change operation
By Miguel Andrade, 9 February 2019
As it feigns opposition to regime change in Venezuela, the PT has sent representatives to meet EU leaders who have been at the forefront of the siege of the country.
Washington issues ultimatum to Venezuela over “humanitarian aid” ploy
By Bill Van Auken, 7 February 2019
Behind the cynical pretense of concern over Venezuela’s social crisis, the Pentagon and CIA are setting the stage for an armed confrontation on the country’s border.
Election of Nayib Bukele in El Salvador signals further shift to US imperialism
By Andrea Lobo, 7 February 2019
The overwhelming victory of Bukele was chiefly an expression of popular loathing toward the traditional ruling parties.
European Parliament backs US-led coup in Venezuela
By Alex Lantier and Alejandro Lopez, 2 February 2019
The European powers’ support for a brazen US coup in Latin America underscores that they are no less ruthless in their assertion of their predatory imperialist interests.
Venezuela’s oil and the geopolitics of the US-backed coup
By Gabriel Black, 31 January 2019
Venezuela’s massive reserves are seen by the United States and its allies as a vital chess piece in the war drive against China.
Lima sewage disaster exposes infrastructure neglect in Peru
By Armando Cruz, 31 January 2019
Seeking to exploit the disaster that affected nearly 2,000 people, “free-market” proponents rushed in to demand the privatization of the public water company, Sedapal.
Germany and EU support US-engineered coup in Venezuela
By Peter Schwarz, 30 January 2019
Berlin and Brussels are backing the Venezuelan coup because they are pursuing their own imperialist interests in Latin America.
Hundreds missing, 58 dead in Brazil mine disaster
By Gabriel Lemos, 28 January 2019
The population of Brumadinho and all of Brazil reacted with anger and revulsion against this tragedy.
US coup bid pushes Venezuela closer to invasion or civil war
By Bill Van Auken, 26 January 2019
Washington is keeping its embassy in Caracas open in defiance of the Venezuelan government, using diplomatic personnel as bait for a potential military confrontation.
Washington escalates coup provocations in Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 25 January 2019
Secretary of State Pompeo is to speak to the UN Security Council Saturday on Venezuela, a patent propaganda gesture aimed at preparing intervention.
Brazilian Workers Party uses crime wave to back fascistic Bolsonaro on repression and austerity
By Miguel Andrade, 25 January 2019
Under the guise of fighting crime, Bolsonaro and the PT are both seeking to extend the definition to suppress social opposition.
Reports indicate Haitian government involvement in La Saline massacre
By John Marion, 25 January 2019
The massacre in La Saline on November 13—in which 59 people were killed, including young children—rivals the crimes of the Duvalier dictatorship.
Canada’s "diversity" imperialism
By Keith Jones, 25 January 2019
Justin Trudeau, presiding over what has been hailed as the most diverse cabinet in Canadian history, has signed on to Washington’s coup plot against Venezuela.
Fire kills 18 at rehab center in Ecuador
By Cesar Uco, 16 January 2019
The tragedy is a direct consequence of government austerity policies directed at promoting foreign investment at the expense of public health and education.
Bolivia’s Morales and Brazil’s Bolsonaro collaborate in rendition of Cesare Battisti to Italy
By Bill Van Auken, 16 January 2019
Bolivia’s role in what amounted to an extra-judicial rendition is emblematic of the sharp rightward turn of what remains of Latin America’s “Pink Tide” governments.
Brazil’s Bolsonaro increases drive for “pensions’ reform,” more state powers in second week of government
By Miguel Andrade, 15 January 2019
As Bolsonaro prepares unprecedented attacks on the Brazilian working class, the Workers Party (PT) is seeking an accommodation with possible “dissidents” in his cabinet.
Venezuela’s Maduro sworn in for second term amid rising social unrest and threats of intervention
By Bill Van Auken, 11 January 2019
Washington, the EU and the so-called Lima Group of right-wing Latin American governments have called Maduro’s second term “illegitimate,” inviting regime change.
Guatemalan establishment indifferent to deaths of US incarcerated migrant children
By Andrea Lobo, 9 January 2019
The reaction in ruling circles not only reflects their disdain for the country’s impoverished masses, but also their efforts to demonstrate loyal submission to the Trump administration.
Bolivian doctors strike ends amid turmoil over Morales’ bid for fourth term
By Cesar Uco, 8 January 2019
The doctors strike is an expression of the larger problem of pervasive poverty in Bolivia and the continuing turn by the MAS government to the right.
Frente Amplio and Piñera government in Chile suppress 36-day dockworkers’ strike
By Andrea Lobo, 22 December 2018
The FA worked alongside its Morenoite satellites and the trade union to isolate the striking workers at a time of growing social unrest in Chile and across the world.
Brazilian GM workers discuss call for rank-and-file committees
By our reporters, 19 December 2018
Brazil has attracted GM investments based on the recent sellouts of autoworkers, including the firing of senior workers, wage freezes and generalized outsourcing.
After 89 days, trade unions sell out historic strike in Costa Rica
By Andrea Lobo, 14 December 2018
It was the longest strike in Costa Rican history, marking a new stage in the growth of the class struggle and revealing that the treachery of the trade unions knows no bounds.
US-Russia tensions mount over warplanes in Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 12 December 2018
The flight of the Russian warplanes to Caracas follows the provocative US Air Force overflight of Ukraine the previous week.
Peru’s president prepares to attack workers’ living standards
By Cesar Uco, 5 December 2018
The most important issue discussed at the CADE 2018 conference was a coordinated government-business attack on labor costs.
López Obrador’s rise in Mexico sets stage for explosive class struggles
By Eric London, 4 December 2018
AMLO’s proposed policies, packaged in pseudo-populist verbiage, make clear that the aspirations of his voters will soon be shattered.
Andrés Manuel López Obrador inaugurated as new president of Mexico
By Alex González and Don Knowland, 3 December 2018
Popular illusions in promises by the new president to end decades of poverty and oppression in Mexico will crash against his limited, bourgeois program.
As G20 summit opens, US political establishment brays for trade war and military escalation
By Andre Damon, 1 December 2018
Trump’s trip to the G20 summit in Argentina has been proceeded by demands for trade war and military escalation against Russia and China.
Police repression in Buenos Aires for G20: a dress-rehearsal for dictatorship
By Rafael Azul, 1 December 2018
The G20 has been used as a pretext for police-state measures, including an abrogation of the democratic right to assemble and protest.
World economic slowdown hits Peruvian exports
By Cesar Uco, 27 November 2018
Behind Peru’s mushrooming corruption scandals lies the breakdown of the free market economic model introduced in the 1990s.
After new Mexico City airport is canceled, López Obrador rushes to reassure finance capital
By Alex González, 8 November 2018
The incoming AMLO administration made clear that all investments would be secured, while doing nothing to address the capital’s water crisis.
ISO covers up Workers Party role in Bolsonaro’s victory in Brazil
By Miguel Andrade and Bill Van Auken, 6 November 2018
The ISO views the Brazilian events through the prism of its own support for the Democrats and its cover-up of the reactionary basis of their opposition to Trump.
Washington imposes new sanctions against Venezuela and Cuba
By Bill Van Auken, 3 November 2018
Bolton’s speech on the Trump administration’s policy toward Latin America amounted to a demand for regime change in Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua.
Chilean police attack pensioners’ protest in Santiago
By Cesar Uco, 31 October 2018
Well-armed Carabineros, using tear gas and water cannon, repressed the march organized by the NO + AFP movement last Wednesday in Santiago, Chile.
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