Latin Pulse

Mexico is the focus this week on Latin Pulse, with a look forward at the G-20 Summit which will be hosted by Mexico.  Besides an in-depth discussion about how Latin America has lessons for Europe during its economic crisis, the program also features an in-depth discussion of human rights during the Drug War in Mexico.  The news segment of the program covers cooperation between Colombia and Venezuela in the Drug War. In-Depth Interviews: Manuel Suarez-Mier of American University, and Maureen Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA). Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti Writer:  Lydia Beyoud (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 economics diplomacy Europe euro Argentina human rights justice Colombia Juan Manuel Santos drug war Venezuela Felipe Calderon economic crisis G20 Summit summit

Mexico's new #Yo Soy 132 movement takes center stage on Latin Pulse as the Mexican presidential campaign begins to heat up.  The program features an in-depth interview on links between this grassroots student movement and Mexico's left-wing candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.  The program also features an interview with a documentary-maker who is crafting a personal project about Argentina's Dirty War.  The news segment of the program covers the release of French journalist Romeo Langlois by Colombia's FARC. In-Depth Interviews: Manuel Suarez-Mier of American University, and Eileen Reardon, documentarian. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti Writer:  Lydia Beyoud (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 elections politics dissidents PRI PRD PAN Enrique Pena Nieto Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador Josefina Vazquez Mota #Yo Soy 132 Argentina human rights dirty war Colombia Alvaro Uribe FARC

This week's edition of Latin Pulse comes remotely from the Latin American Studies Association (LASA) Congress in San Francisco.  The program focuses on the issue of free speech at the academic conference revolving around controversial visa decisions from the U.S. State Department, denying visas to some Cuban scholars but allowing Mariela Castro, the daughter of Cuba's president, to speak.  The program also features an in-depth interview with the writers of an important book on Central American street gangs.  The news segment of the program includes the results of the elections in the Dominican Republic. In-Depth Interviews: Sheryl Lutjens of California State University at San Marcos, Tom Bruneau & Sonja Wolf, contributors to  Maras: Gang Violence and Security in Central America. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti Writer:  Lydia Beyoud (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 national security Raul Castro Mariela Castro Cuba United States United States State Department Barack Obama Dominican Republic Danilo Medina elections politics free speech gangs violence Central America El Salvador Guatemala Honduras

Two recent studies on migration, the U.S.-Mexico border, and remittances take center stage on this week's edition of Latin Pulse.  The program discusses the decline of migration but the counter-intuitive finding that remittances are increasing.  The program also deals with how migration and immigration policy are affected by the drug war.  The program also covers the landmark legislation passed this week for gay rights and gender identification in Argentina. In-Depth Interviews: Maureen Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and Manuel Orozco of the Inter-American Dialogue. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Lydia Beyoud (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 national security immigration migration remittances economics gay rights Central America transgender rights Argentina economic crisis drug warUnited States

This week, Latin Pulse provides a special focus on this weekend's Summit of the Americas. This is the first such summit in three years, and two of the biggest issues revolve around decriminalizing drugs and bringing Cuba back into the hemisphere's wider diplomatic community. The program discusses these issues, Brazil's rising economic and diplomatic power regarding the summit and this week's meeting between President Barack Obama and Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff, among other matters relating to the summit. Beyond discussing whether the summit will reveal more about the contentious relationship between the U.S. and Venezuela, the program includes news about a sensational kidnapping in Caracas this week. In-Depth Interviews:  Robert Pastor of American University, and Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Colombia Drug War drug decriminalization economics Brazil Dilma Rousseff Barack Obama United States Hugo Chavez Costa Rica Venezuela Cuba diplomacy summit violence CELAC crime Summit of the Americas

Changes in leftist politics in Latin America related to health and death are the central themes in this week's edition of Latin Pulse.  The program provides an update on the status of the Sandinista party (the FSLN) in Nicaragua after the death of Tomas Borge.  And with the failing health of President Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, what is in store for that country during this crucial election year?  The program also deals with political fallout from the resurgence of the Shining Path guerrillas in Peru. In-Depth Interviews: Manuel Orozco of the Inter-American Dialogue, and Michael McCarthy of Johns Hopkins University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Lydia Beyoud (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 Peru Shining Path politics Nicaragua Sandinistas FSLN Tomas Borge Daniel Ortega Rosario Murillo Venezuela Hugo Chavez Henrique Capriles Radonski elections democracy

Religion and politics, the topics we're told not to bring up in polite company take center stage this week on Latin Pulse, with the focus again returning to Cuba.  The Cuban government's response to the visit of Pope Benedict XVI continues to resonate across the island in the human rights community and beyond.  The program also includes news of the death of Sandinista leader Tomas Borge in Nicaragua. In-Depth Interviews: Tom Quigley formerly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Rev. Joe Eldridge of American University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Lydia Beyoud (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 Cuba Raul Castro human rights dissident movements civil society politics religion Catholicism Pope Benedict XVI Fidel Castro United States Alan Gross Tomas Borge Sandinistas Daniel Ortega Nicaragua

This week, Latin Pulse takes a look at two very different dissident movements.  First, a concentration on the crackdown against anti-Castro groups in Cuba after the visit of Pope Benedict XVI.  Then the program shifts farther south to look at the Chilean student movement and why those students are setting an example for groups around the globe.  The program also includes the latest on the Secret Service sex scandal which may have spread from Colombia to include El Salvador. In-Depth Interviews: Orlando Gutierrez-Boronat of the Directorio Democrático Cubano, and  Lisa Llanos of the Center for Democracy in the Americas. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Colombia United States Secret Service prostitution scandal Summit of the Americas El Salvador Cuba Raul Castro human rights dissident movements civil society education protest movements Pope Benedict XVI Chile Sebastian Pinera Camila Vallejo Augusto Pinochet

Beyond the latest on the U.S. Secret Service's Colombian scandal, Latin Pulse looks at corruption and human rights concerns in Brazil, this week.  The program also discusses the new book The North American Idea, and what it says about U.S.-Mexico relations, NAFTA and other concerns. In-Depth Interviews: Matt Taylor of American University, and  Robert Pastor of American University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Colombia Drug War economics Brazil Dilma Rousseff Cuba human rights corruption diplomacy Mexico violence guns Falkland Islands United States Secret Service Argentina NAFTA trade prostitution scandal Juan Manuel Santos Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner Summit of the Americas

Various Latin American presidents have floated the idea in recent months of decriminalizing drugs as a strategy in the Drug War. What are the prospects for such a plan? Will this topic make it on the agenda at the upcoming Summit of the Americas? The program also looks at the economic power of Brazil in advance of the summit between U.S. President Barack Obama and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. The news segment of the program deals with the latest release of kidnap victims by Colombia's Revolutionary Armed Forces (the FARC by its Spanish-acronym). In-Depth Interviews: Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue, and Matt Taylor of American University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Colombia Juan Manuel Santos FARC drug war Guatemala Drug Decriminalization Felipe Calderon economics Brazil Dilma Rousseff Barack Obama Otto Perez Molina

After the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Latin America, Latin Pulse devotes most of this program to examining the aftermath of his trip. The program includes a review of the pope's various preachings in relation to the politics and societal progress of the region. The discussion included specific discussion of the Catholic Church's role in a time of crisis in Mexico during the Drug War, a debate over the pope's critique of Cuban political and economic policy, and the controversy surrounding how the pope dealt with Cuban dissidents. In-Depth Interviews: Richard Coll of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Geoff Thale of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA). Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Cuba Pope Benedict XVI Catholicism human rights PAN Raul Castro drug war economics politics civil society corruption

Latin Pulse gives a special focus this week to the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Latin America. The program covers the content and plans of the pope for visits to Mexico and Cuba. The program also features discussion of the economic situation in Central America, covering new dynamism for diversification of the economy. The news segment of the program provides a reaction to progress in the presidential election campaign in Mexico. In-Depth Interviews: Tom Quigley formerly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Dr. Benedicte Bull of the University of Oslo. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Central America El Salvador Cuba Pope Benedict XVI Catholicism Honduras human rights PAN PRI Enrique Pena Nieto Josefina Vazquez Mota Raul Castro drug war economics politics economic crisis

This week, Latin Pulse provides a special focus on the issue of immigration. Some of the interviews in this week's program were gathered remotely during our recent trip to Guatemala. So the program includes points of view about immigration from Central America, Mexico and the United States. Issues include the impact of immigration on the environment and rural resources, and also how deportation affects communities in both the United States and Guatemala. The news segment of the program covers the continuing controversy over illegal mining in Peru. In-Depth Interviews: Susan Kandel of PRISMA & Mario Bronfman of the Ford Foundation - Mexico City, and Elizabeth Oglesby of the University of Arizona. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Lydia Beyoud (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 Guatemala El Salvador Mexico Central America United States Peru immigration environment environmentalism deportations remittances mining extractive commodities Nadine Heredia

This week, Latin Pulse has a special focus on Venezuela. With Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez still in Cuba receiving cancer treatments during an election year, questions have been raised about what that means not only for his country's politics but also politics throughout the hemisphere. The program includes in-depth discussion of Venezuela's electoral system, media, and issues related to free speech, along with what Venezuela's issues mean for the presidential race in the United States. The news segment of the program includes a short interview with the first lady of El Salvador regarding equality for women. In-Depth Interviews: Jennifer McCoy of The Carter Center and Alex Main of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Venezuela Hugo Chavez media free speech Henrique Capriles Radonski politics elections Barack Obama United States El Salvador Vanda Pignato gender equality

Latin Pulse has a variety of topics this week, with a return to Mexico and Central America. The program includes a preview of the presidential race in Mexico, including an analysis of the three major candidates. Another in-depth segment includes discussion of the impact of the Drug War on Central America with some focus on both Guatemala and Honduras. The weekly news review has the latest on President Rafael Correa of Ecuador's anti-media campaign. In-Depth Interviews: Manuel Suarez-Mier of American University and Steven Dudley of InsightCrime.org. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Vanessa Haces Gonzatti (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 Ecuador Rafael Correa media free speech Mexico politics elections Enrique Pena Nieto PRI Josefina Vazquez Mota PAN Manuel Lopez Obrador PRD drug war Guatemala Alfonso Portillo Honduras Central America