The document discusses United States economic imperialism in Latin America during the 19th century. After independence from European colonial powers, Latin American countries struggled with political instability under military dictators known as caudillos. Their economies remained focused on exporting raw materials, making them dependent on foreign trade. The United States and other powers increasingly pressured Latin America economically and politically through the century, culminating in the Roosevelt Corollary that justified U.S. intervention as an "international police power" in the region.

1. Main Idea: Empire Building—The United
States put increasing economic and
political pressure on Latin America during
the 19th century.
28.3 United States Economic
Imperialism

2. Latin America After
Independence
 Colonial Legacy
 Most Latin Americans worked for large land owners.
 Wages low, prices high
 Workers debt accumulated
 Rich got richer, poor poorer
 Governments took over Native or Church land and
sold it to the rich.
 Economic development lagged because of these
conditions.

3. Latin America After
Independence
 Political Instability
 A widespread problem in 19th century Latin America
 Leaders gain fame and power during the struggle
for independence.
 After independence many became caudillos—
military dictators or “strong men.”
 By mid-1800s nearly all Latin American nations
were ruled by caudillos.
 Juan Vicente Gomez was a ruthless caudillo who
ruled Venezuela for nearly 20 years
 “All Venezuela is my cattle ranch.”

4. Latin America After
Independence
 Juan Vicente
Gomez was a
ruthless caudillo
who ruled
Venezuela for
nearly 20 years
 “All Venezuela is
my cattle ranch.”
 Notice that some
caudillos like to
where military
uniforms with
extensive
decorations.

5. Latin America After
Independence
 Reform-minded
president of
Argentina, Domingo
Sarmiento was the
exception.
 Improved education
 Number of students
doubled
 Unfortunately,
reformers did not stay
in office long, and
caudillos often seized
control of

6. Caudillos vs. Democracy
 The caudillos faced little opposition.
 The wealthy landowners usually
supported them.
 Latin Americans lacked a democratic
tradition.
 Voting rights were restricted to the upper
and middle classes

7. Economies Grow Under Foreign Influence
 Britain and the United States became Latin America’s
main trading partners after their independence from
Spain and Portugal.
 Old Products and New Markets
 The development of the steamship and the building of
railroads greatly increased Latin American trade.
 Invention of refrigeration increased Latin America's exports.
 The sale of perishable goods soared.
 But foreign nations benefited far more from the increased
trade than Latin America did.
 Latin Americans imported European and North American
manufactured goods.
 They had little reason to develop their own manufacturing
industries.
 Without industry Latin America could not play a leading role on the
world economic stage.

8. Outside Investment and Interference
 Latin American countries did not re-invest in
infrastructure or industry to become self-sufficient.
 They often borrowed money at high interest rates to
develop facilities for their export industries.
 Owed Britain, France, the United States, and
Germany.
 Often unable to pay back their loans
 Foreign lenders
 threatened to collect the debt by force.
 threatened to take over the facilities they had funded.
 gained control of many Latin American industries.
 This began a new era of economic imperialism.

9. A Latin American Empire
 The Monroe
Doctrine
 1823, President
James Monroe
issues the Monroe
Doctrine which
states
“the American
continents . . . are
henceforth not to be
considered as
subjects for future
colonization by any

10. Cuba Declares Independence
 1868—Cuba declares
independence and
fights a ten year war
against Spain.
 1878—Cuba gives up
this war.
 1895—Jose Marti
returns to Cuba to
launch another war
against Spain.
 By mid-1890’s, U.S. had
substantial business
holdings in Cuba.
Jose Marti

11. Spanish-American War
 1898—U.S. joins the Cuban war for
independence by fighting the Spanish-
American War.
 U.S. attacks the Philippine Islands first to take it
from Spain.
 An attack is launched on Cuba.
 The Spanish defense collapses.
 1901—Cuba is declared an independent
nation, but the United States installs a military
government. Cubans come to resent U.S.
interference.

12. Roosevelt’s “Rough Riders”
Theodore Roosevelt in his
“Rough Rider” uniform
(above), and with his regiment
on top of San Juan Hill (left).

14. The Philippine-American War
 The Philippine–American War, also known as
the Philippine War of Independence or the
Philippine Insurrection (1899–1902), was an
armed conflict between a group of Filipino
revolutionaries and the United States which arose
from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic
to gain independence following annexation by the
United States.
 In 1916, the United States granted the Philippines
autonomy and promised eventual self-
government, which came in 1934.
 In 1946, following World War II, the Philippines
was granted independence.

15. The Battle of Manila

16. Emilio Aguinaldo
 He led the fight for the
independence of the
Philippines.

17.  1899 political
cartoon by Winsor
McCay. Uncle Sam
(representing the
United States), gets
entangled with rope
around a tree
labeled
"Imperialism" while
trying to subdue a
bucking colt or mule
labeled "Philippines"
while a figure
representing Spain
walks off over the
horizon carrying a

18. Filipino soldiers outside Manila in 1899

19. Opposition to the Philippine War
 Mark Twain famously opposed the
war by using his influence in the
press. He said the war betrayed
the ideals of American democracy
by not allowing the Filipino people
to choose their own destiny.
 In a diary passage removed by
Twain's first biographical editor
Thomas Bigelow Paine, Twain
refers to American troops as “our
uniformed assassins” and
describes their killing of “six
hundred helpless and weaponless
savages” in the Philippines as “a
long and happy picnic with
nothing to do but sit in comfort
and fire the Golden Rule into
those people down there and

20. The Panama Canal
 It was a 13,000 mile trip by sea around the
continent of South America to reach the Pacific.
 France had tried to build a canal across Panama,
but failed.
 The U.S. offered Columbia $10 million for the
right to build a canal, but Columbia wanted more
money.
 The United States encouraged a rebellion in
Panama. When Panama became independent
from Columbia in 1903, the U.S. was able to
begin work on the canal.
 Canal opens in 1914.

21. Panama Canal

22. Scientific Advance and the Panama Canal
 Tropical diseases like malaria and
yellow fever were the biggest
hindrances to building the canal.
 At times work stoppages occurred
because there were so many
workers sick from these diseases.
 When it was conclusively
discovered that mosquitoes carry
these diseases a massive
campaign occurred to reduce the
mosquito population to prevent the
spread of these diseases.
 Swamps were drained and oil
spread on standing water to kill
mosquito larvae.
 As a result the yellow fever
epidemic was almost completely
wiped out to that work could
continue on the canal.
William Crawford Gorgas, Chief
Sanitary Officer to the Isthmian
Commission

23. The Roosevelt Corollary
 The Roosevelt Corollary gave the United States
the right to be “an international police power” in
the Western Hemisphere.
 The United States used the Roosevelt Corollary
many times in the following years to justify U.S.
intervention in Latin America. U.S. troops
occupied some countries for decades.