Latin Pulse

Human rights again provide the central focus this week on Latin Pulse.  This time, an in-depth discussion with the human rights ombudsman of Uruguay provides a look at the history of struggles for human rights in Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile, along with the key role played by the United States in the region.  The fight to change U.S. policies that supported dictators in the region is a central theme for this program.  The news segment of the program covers the debate over comprehensive immigration reform in the United States. The program includes an in-depth interview with: Juan Raul Ferreira, the Human Rights Ombudsman of Uruguay. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States human rights military aid Orlando Letelier  Ed Koch immigration Mexico Uruguay Chile Argentina dictators diplomacy Jorge Videla Operation Condor U.S. Senate  U.S. Congress  Joe Eldridge  United Nations 

Human rights in Central America, both past and present, take center stage this week on Latin Pulse. The program looks at the fallout from the guilty verdict in Guatemala that has sent former dictator Efrain Rios Montt to prison for genocide and crimes against humanity.  Also, the program looks at the return of death squads in Honduras and the lack of human rights there in an election year.  The news segment of the program covers the controversial change in ownership of the television network Globovision in Venezuela. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Kathryn Johnson of the Guatemala Human Rights Commission (GHRC); and  Alex Main of the Center for Economic & Policy Research (CEPR). Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Hugo Chavez Central America  Nicolas Maduro United States media politics gangs Venezuela violence murder genocide extra-judicial killings justice Drug War Honduras elections coup disappearances Efrain Rios Montt death squads human rights Juan Carlos Bonilla Guatemala law enforcement  indigenous issues  military militarization police DEA Libre Party  Liberal Party  National Party  Xiomara Castro  Manuel Zelaya  national security  Drug Enforcement Administration U.S. State Department minority issues 

With the visit of President Barack Obama to Mexico and Central America this week Latin Pulse focuses on the agenda of the United States in the region.  Obama has underlined the importance of trade and economic agreements that will frame this trip.  However, the program also ranges into the issues of immigration and the Drug War that will undoubtedly also be important to this round of diplomacy.  The news segment of the program covers the clash in the Venezuelan National Assembly between the ruling socialist party and the opposition, leaving lawmakers literally bruised and battered. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Manuel Suarez-Mier of American University; and  Francisco Robles Rivera of the Universidad Nacional and the Universidad de Costa Rica. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America El Salvador Central America  Barack Obama  United States immigration politics Mexico Venezuela economics trade diplomacy European Union deportations Drug War violence NAFTA CAFTA poverty Enrique Pena Nieto Trans-Pacific Partnership human rights Otto Perez Molina Guatemala El Salvador  John Kerry  CELAC imperialism

The unseen effects of immigration policy in the United States are the focus this week on Latin Pulse.  The primary discussion revolves around the large number of deportations in the Latino population of undocumented living in the United States.  The discussion looks at a research project to see how deportations affect Salvadoran communities, with a special focus on the effects on children.  The news segment of the program looks at the outcome of the presidential elections in Paraguay and plans that president-elect Horacio Cartes has to reconnect his country to the trade bloc Mercosur. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Eric Hershberg of the Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS) at American University; and  Dennis Stinchcomb of CLALS. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America El Salvador Colorado Party  U.S. Senate immigration politics Mexico elections Paraguay trade Latinos United States Marco Rubio violence reforms health issues remittances gangs deportations Horacio Cartes social services gang truce  truce Barack Obama

The surprising results of the snap Venezuelan presidential election and the violence that followed provide one theme for this week's edition of Latin Pulse. The program includes two interviews reacting to the outcome, including a former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela.  The program also looks at the issues facing Venezuela's new president.  The other central theme of the program is a look forward at this weekend's elections in Paraguay, which includes the comeback of that country's powerful Colorado Party.  The news segment of the program reviews the details of the recently unveiled bipartisan immigration reform proposal in the United States Senate. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Charles Shapiro of the Institute of the Americas Dr. Christopher Sabatini of the Americas Society/Council of the Americas; and  Dr. Peter Lambert of the University of Bath. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Hugo Chavez Nicolas Maduro Henrique Capriles Radonski Venezuela politics economics elections coup immigration United States U.S. Senate reforms violence John Kerry recount OAS UNASUR protests oil nationalizations shortages business capitalism diplomacy Efrain Alegre Horacio Cartes Colorado Party  corruption Federico Franco  Fernando Lugo Paraguayimpeachment

The Venezuelan snap presidential election has Latin America enthralled this week and so Latin Pulse turns its full attention this week to pre-election politics.  The program focuses on the candidates:  Interim President Nicolas Maduro and Governor Henrique Capriles Radonski.  Some of the discussion deals with inequities during the campaign and how Capriles is trailing in the polls.  The program also looks at Maduro's record and discusses the potential for diplomacy between the United States and Venezuela moving forward.  The program includes analysis from both Washington, D.C. and Caracas. The program includes in-depth interviews with: David Smilde of the University of Georgia; and    Alex Main of the Center for Economic & Policy Research. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine  Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Hugo Chavez Nicolas Maduro Henrique Capriles Radonski Venezuela politics economics elections coup media Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Henri Falcon Carlos Ocariz CELAC ALBA Sebastian Pinera Chile diplomacy United States Barack Obama  unions labor espionage

Politics and justice provide the twin themes this week on Latin Pulse with a discussion of Venezuelan politics before the country's snap presidential elections and a look at the historic human rights trial in Guatemala.  The program discusses the chances of Venezuelan candidates Acting President Nicolas Maduro and Governor Henrique Capriles Radonski, with a discussion of how the Capriles campaign can possibly become competitive in the race, as it also fights the popularity of the late Hugo Chavez, the former president.  The program segment on the Guatemalan trial discusses why this step is so important for that country's indigenous population.  The news segment of the program covers the reaction of Paraguay's president to accusations that he took power through questionable means last summer. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Victor Amaya of TalCual; and    Kathryn Johnson of the Guatemala Human Rights Commission. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine  Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America human rights Venezuela Guatemala justice politics Paraguay Federico Franco Nicolas Maduro coup elections genocide indigenous issues Henrique Capriles Radonski corruption impunity media Claudia Paz y Paz Hugo Chavez

This month marks the anniversary of the controversial 2012 gang truce in El Salvador.  This week, Latin Pulse looks back at how the truce has worked between the large transnational criminal organizations MS-13 and Barrio 18, which characterize themselves as street gangs or maras.  The primary question is how was the truce brought about?  Did the Catholic Church broker the gang peace independently or did the Salvadoran government mask its involvement in the truce by getting the Church involved?  The news segment of the program looks at the expectations of President Barack Obama concerning the debate over immigration reforms. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Steven Dudley of InSight Crime; and    Hector Silva of American University's Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS). Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Barack Obama immigration gangs MS-13 politics crime El Salvador Mauricio Funes violence media prisons Catholic Church Barrio 18 Gang homicide drug cartels organized crime Mexico United States truce Central America

The installation of Pope Francis this week focuses Latin Pulse on topics of both spirituality and science. The program discusses the rise of evangelical Christianity over liberation theology. The program also explores the pope's views on same sex marriage, the LGBT community, and how the Catholic hierarchy failed to fight the military junta that ruled Argentina. The focus of the program turns to health with the allegations of the Venezuelan government regarding the origins of the cancer that afflicted former President Hugo Chavez. The program also looks at the rise of cancer rates in Latin America. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Prof. Andrew Chesnut* of Virginia Commonwealth University; and  Rolando Camacho of the Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT). Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.) *Chesnut is the author of Competitive Spirits: Latin America's New Religious Economy.  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Hugo Chavez Veneuzuela pope Catholicism spirituality Argentina health issues LGBT issues religion pentacostalism evangelicalism Pope Francis The Vatican Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner Brazil Malvinas theology diplomacy poverty cancer HIV-AIDS same sex marriage Falkland Islands dirty war United States Israel politics

This week, Latin Pulse returns to the topic of telenovelas. The program explores the cultural aspects of this popular television form and discusses the advances of that form as propelled by television writers and producers in Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil.  The program also explores how telenovelas have been used as metaphorical political commentary, especially in Venezuela and Brazil.  The news segment of the program covers how Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was elevated to pope, replacing Pope Benedict XVI, and became the first pope from Latin America.  The program includes in-depth interviews with: Antonio La Pastina of Texas A&M University and  Carolina Acosta-Alzuru of the University of Georgia. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Alexia Campbell. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.) A full listing of songs used in the production of this special can be found here.  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Hugo Chavez Veneuzuela pope politics elections Colombia Ugly Betty gender issues religion Catholicism Argentina Pope Francis United States Pope Benedict XVI telenovelas culture media Venevision RCTV censorship Yo Soy Betty La Fea Cafe con Aroma de Mujer free speech Brazil Cosita Rica O Clone Gloria Perez Caminho das Indias De Corpo e Alma Empreguetes Cheias de Charme

The death of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez resonated globally this week and this episode of Latin Pulse focuses on Chavez and his legacy.   The program looks at the positives and negatives attached to the Chavez government. Some parts of the program look at the outcomes of the Chavez social programs in Venezuela.  The discussion also covers Venezuelan politics after Chavez. Finally, the program focuses on the potential for diplomatic change between the United States and Venezuela in the post-Chavez era.  The program includes in-depth interviews with: Daniel Hellinger of Webster University and the Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA);  Eric Hershberg of American University's Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS); and Fulton Armstrong of American University's CLALS. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Hugo Chavez Veneuzuela cancer politics elections Colombia Nicolas Maduro Diosdado Cabello Cuba poverty healthcare human rights United States Henrique Capriles Radonski oil economics UNASUR CELAC OAS diplomacy

Politics in South America provides the common theme this week on Latin Pulse, as the program looks at upcoming votes in Paraguay and on the Falkland Islands.  Voters on the Falklands will decide if they wish to stay a part of the United Kingdom.  Argentina claims the islands and refers to them as the Malvinas.  The program also looks at the presidential campaign in Paraguay and questions posed about frontrunner Horacio Cartes.  The news segment of the program covers the move this week by Mexican prosecutors to charge the powerful head of that country's teachers union with various corruption charges.  The program includes in-depth interviews with: Prof. Andrew Nickson of the University of Birmingham in the U.K.; and Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United Kingdom Mexico Paraguay politics elections Malvinas Falkland Islands Horacio Cartes education corruption Argentina Colorado Party Fernando Lugo Enrique Pena Nieto Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner impeachment Efrain Alegre Wikileaks referendum China economics express coup land reform sexual impropriety Drug War coup media diplomacy Grupo Clarin

El Salvador and its relationship with the United States is the focus this week on Latin Pulse.  The program includes an in-depth interview with El Salvador's ambassador to the United States and the conversation ranges across a variety of issues including immigration, gangs, and human rights.  The ambassador discusses how immigration is not solely a domestic issue for the United States but is also part of diplomatic relations, due to remittances.  The news segment of the program covers the reaction to the re-election of Rafael Correa as the president of Ecuador. The program includes an in-depth interview with: Ambassador Francisco Altschul of El Salvador. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States immigration Ecuador politics elections Honduras Barack Obama Rafael Correa Nicaragua remittances FMLN El Salvador social programs Barrio 18 Gang 18th Street Gang deportations Mauricio Funes crime gangs MS13 violence immigration reform Central America human rights impunity justice diplomacy democracy maras civil war Inocente Montano Jesuit killings

This week Latin Pulse takes divergent paths in its weekly examination of Latin America. The program provides one key focus on the Ecuadoran elections this weekend, where President Rafael Correa is seeking re-election.  The program covers Correa's prospects for re-election and key themes for his next term.  The program also looks at new affirmative action programs in Brazil and discusses the inequities for Afro-Brazilians in the education and corporate spheres.  The news segment of the program gives the latest on the rhetorical debate in the United States regarding proposed reforms in immigration policies. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Rob Albro of the Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS) at American University; and Bernd Reiter of the University of South Florida. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Mexico United States immigration Ecuador politics elections Barack Obama Rafael Correa Wikileaks media oil Guillermo Lasso social programs Afro-Latin American issues Afro-Brazilians Hugo Chavez CIA imperialism Venezuela discrimination affirmative action racial inequality racial policies racism Brazil diplomacy

Disappearances linked to the Drug War and human rights in Mexico are the focus this week on Latin Pulse.  The program includes an in-depth report that shows drug cartels are preying on undocumented workers headed to the United States and the Mexican government has not reacted in strong ways to these human rights issues.  The program also deals with corruption and the institutional links between law enforcement, the military, and the cartels in Mexico.  The news segment of the program deals rape and violence in Acapulco. The program includes an in-depth interview with: Robert Goldman of American University. Other interviews include: Maureen Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA); Nik Steinberg of Human Rights Watch; and Sonja Wolf of INSYDE. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Mexico human rights disappearances violence immigration crime international law Drug War Colombia crime drug cartels Felipe Calderon Enrique Pena Nieto FARC civil war corruption