Calling Out US Intervention in Latin America
US-El Salvador Sister Cities first began organizing to pressure the United States to withdraw support to the Salvadoran military. The United States has a long history of intervening in ways that disregard the sovereignty of El Salvador in favor of policies and other outcomes that are friendly to U.S. interests.
Because of our deep relationships of solidarity with people in communities throughout El Salvador, US-El Salvador Sister Cities is perfectly positioned to “blow the whistle” when any US actions or policies threaten to undermine Salvadoran sovereignty or disproportionately affect the poor and vulnerable of El Salvador.
Often U.S. aid money, which is supposed to generate positive development, comes with a political agenda, and rather than bringing about greater development actually leads to making communities more vulnerable to the economic interests of US companies. Or the U.S. Ambassador, whose role is supposed to be purely diplomatic, becomes overly involved in pressuring for policies that favor U.S. economic interests. These are moments when concerned U.S. citizens calling their representatives and sharing a different perspective — the perspective of our Salvadoran sisters and brothers — on the reality of our country’s actions can have a great impact.
If you’re interested in joining our monthly conversations about this subject, don’t hesitate to contact us.