European Power In Latin America

The readings of week three described the economic issues and the rise of the different powers in Latin America. The Authors Bakewell and Escosura both wrote about the shifts in power from the Europeans to the independence of Latin America. Everything starting with the Bolivar movement, when Simon Bolivar wanted to free his country of the Spanish control in Venezuela. These movements showed that the Latin American people had enough of the European control in their land. They wanted to have their own freedom and power over their countries, making them cause revolutions in order to remove the European control. The switch from European control to the control of the people had an impact majorly on the economy and government of the people. This even affected the mindset of the people as well. In relation to what we have learned in lecture about the European power and how it changed the mindset of the people continues on today. Many of the countries are still shattered and hurt from the oppression by the European
In Escosura’s writings, he tells about the underdevelopment of the Latin American countries after they claimed independence from the European power. It argued that “independence was a consequence of local pressure on institutions that could not provide for the needs of trade and production” (Escosura 465). The new independent countries faced economic instability because of the shattered infrastructure they had. Even today, Latin America still is seen as an Underdeveloped continent. They live off of trading goods such as fruit, oil, and many other objects to create a better economy. In contrast to Bakewell’s writings, he described the rise of independence starting with the Bolivar movement in Venezuela. The men that led the wars for independence, held the longest political careers in the new independent states due to their personal qualities as