Argentines Demonstrate... and Demonstrate

Striking Argentine stevedores in Rosario have brought that export port to its knees over the last week. While workers are waiting to hear from the export terminals about negotiations, the soy bean harvest has already started. Reuters reports that workers in Argentina are costing businesses $US 12.5 million daily. It looks to me like the Argentine workers are on the ball. Bloomberg's reports that soybean futures are up about $.10 a bushel, while soy meal is up nearly $3 per ton. High demand for soy products and a rising market will soon place the grain loading terminals in Argentina in a sticky position, once again demonstrating that you can say what you want about the brilliance of business people and entrepreneurs, but the food doesn't load itself on ships.

For more on labor and export booms, see Charle's Bergquist's oldie-but-goodie, Labor in Latin America. Meat workers were absolutely linked with Peronismo in the day, but I'm not so sure Kirchner's neo-Peronism is being so agressive (NASDAQ reports sound like Kirchner is trying to get labor unions to play ball with business).

What US Students Should Know, or, What the "Area" People Have to Say

Ok, another incredibly frustrating conversation with a colleague over people of the Americas in the United States. When I asked her what she taught about Latin Americans in the US, she responded that she taught about Coronado, Cortes, Zoot Suit Riots, and the UFW. I was floored. So, here are a few books I think US historians need to read and incorporate into their survey US history courses.

- Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. Say no to white gods that show up with no context and kill all the Indians.

- Empires of the Atlantic World. Say no to the ANGLO/franco focus of the imperial projects of the Americas.

- Ecological Imperialism or The Columbian Exchange. Say no to teaching kids that the "Columbian Exchange" is the old "triangular trade" of third grade, just with a new name.

- Neither Enemies nor Friends. Problematic at times, but helps say no to the 50s notion of simplistic racial US.

- Empire's Workshop and Empire and Revolution. Say no to US imperialism starting in 1898.

- True Tales and Delfino's Gun. Say no to simplistic ideas on immigration.

- Barrios Nortenos and Chicanos. Say no to lectures on Latino-free labor movements.

- Captives and Cousins and Comanche Empire. Say no to a West devoid of Mexico and Spain.

- Whitewashed Adobe. Say no to a California absent Mexicans until the summer of 1943.

- Tree of Hate. Say no to the reasons Latin America and Latinos disappear from US history survey courses.

Ok, so there are ten of my entries. For the three people that follow this blog and the two that will stumble on to it from google: What would you want a US historian to read and incorporate into their courses? Martinez? Anzaldua? M.T. Garcia? Who do you think they should be reading?

Final note: This frustrating conversation came just two days after a student came up to me after we did civil rights and thanked me because she thought only African Americans had a civil rights movement. She'd never heard of LULAC, AGIF, Bert Corona, Dolores Huerta...nada. Crazy, man.

ICE is Chilling ... An Interesting Report on Homeland Security

The National Commission on ICE Misconduct and Violations of 4th Amendment Rights has put out an interesting report on ... ICE misconduct and violations of 4th Amendment rights (duh). It makes for an interesting read. In case the half-a-dozen regular readers haven't heard of this report, here is a link to the PDF. And here is a link to the web site. http://www.icemisconduct.org/icemisconduct/ NOTE: The commission is associated with the United Food and Commercial Workers union.

You can read the ICE 2008 Annual report here. I'm still combing through it, but I'm sure I'll have something to say. And I suppose in a few weeks after this goes live someone will come and inquire as to my immigration status. "Sorry, officer, my family did illegally enter North America in the early 17th century ... ."

Barrios Norteños

I've been off flitting around Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Arkansas the last two weeks (don't ask), and I HIGHLY recommend dusting off that copy of Barrios Norteños.

Last year we had a job candidate give a presentation on labor in Saint Louis, and when I asked about the dynamic of Hispanic labor in the work force he said, with a straight face, that there were not enough Hispanics in Saint Louis to pay attention to. Dude.