Titles Say it ALL
Latin American Independence
Countries in Latin America are considered third-world countries. Third-world
means that they are either poor or undeveloped. Usually, the countries of Latin America
were once prosperous, but have eventually fallen apart. It has been very difficult for
countries in Latin America to become independent and stable.
First, the countries were taken over by Europeans. Spain sent officials to
rule in place of the king and gave them power. The officials were very strict on
the natives and placed harsh rules. The people were not allowed to trade with
other countries besides their ruling country. This angered the people which lead
them to the desire of independence.
Next, not all of the people in Latin America were for independence. The
creoles were scared that the new constitution would take away their rights and
land. Miguel Hidalgo did not have the support of Mexico because he promised to
distribute the land equally, and that meant some wealthy people would lose land
(World Cultures 472). Hidalgo was captured in 1811 and the plan of
independence failed (World Cultures 472).
Many people wanted to gain independence. The mestizos hoped to move
up in society once the peninsulares were gone (World Cultures 469). Slaves
finally realized independence was a way to gain freedom and burned sugar cane
in the fields (World Cultures 470). They killed hundreds of slave owners which
resulted in a 13 year civil war (World Cultures 470). It took a long time for these
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people to get what they wanted. Latin American countries never had a plan for themselves after they
gained independence. Once they had finally gained freedom, they hadn’t selected
a leader or made a government, so they were not successful. Caudillos seized
power and ruled for long period of time. While under rule of the caudillos, Latin
America was in chaos because they were not being governed correctly. If the
countries had already had a huge plan and government set up with laws before
gaining independence, they could have been prosperous.
It has also been hard for the countries because most of the people are very
poor. People were trying their hardest to find work so they could eat, and did not
have time to rebel. Dangerous and poor paying jobs could be found in mines, but
only hired a certain amount of people (Motorcycle Diaries Salles, Perf, Bernal,
and Serna). The people that wanted to gain freedom could not afford weapons or
ammunition, so they gave up.
It would take many things for Latin American countries to develop into
first-world countries. They would need a very good leader and government that
would not hog all of the currency. There would need to be many openings for
jobs with fair pay for the people. Another important thing would be education.
There would need to be many schools of all types so people could graduate and
gain degrees. You must go to school and get a degree to get a good paying job.
Latin America could develop into a first-world country if they really tried, but it
would take many years for them to achieve that goal.
The countries in Latin America have suffered many hardships. They
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gained independence, but had no government, were poor, and have had cruel
leaders. There are many ways why Latin American countries are third-world and
many ways that they could become first-world, but it will take time for them to
figure that out. It has been difficult for countries in Latin America to become
economically prosperous and stable.
posted by Keita the Skata @ 12:29 PM
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