U.S. Interests in Latin America: Economy and Human Rights
This paper examines the major issues critical to U.S. interests in Latin America from the perspective of a State Department policy advisor. It focuses on two central concerns: economic instability and human rights. The economic discussion highlights the persistent poverty and low per capita income growth in the region despite aggregate GDP gains, with detailed attention to the crises in Argentina and Venezuela. The human rights section addresses the widespread problem of street children, including forced child labor, violence, and abuse. The paper concludes with policy recommendations that promote Latin American economic self-determination and propose trade school programs to address the street children crisis.
- Introduction: U.S. Advisory Priorities in Latin America: Two critical U.S. interests identified: economy, human rights
- Economic Instability in Latin America: Regional GDP trends, Argentina recession, Venezuela oil dependency
- Human Rights: Street Children and Child Labor: Street children poverty, abuse, child labor statistics
- Policy Recommendations for Economic Development: Regional summit for Latin American self-determined economic policy
- Policy Recommendations for Human Rights: Trade schools with dormitories proposed for street children
- Conclusion: Recommendations tied back to long-term U.S. interests
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper organizes its argument around two clearly defined pillars — economy and human rights — making it easy to follow and persuasive in its policy framing.
- Specific country-level economic data (GDP figures, inflation rates for Argentina and Venezuela) grounds the analysis in concrete evidence rather than broad generalization.
- The policy recommendations section directly mirrors the problem sections, giving the paper a satisfying symmetry and practical orientation.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates the technique of problem-to-solution structuring: each issue (economic instability, street children) is first diagnosed with evidence and then followed by a targeted, actionable policy recommendation. This approach is particularly effective in policy writing because it shows the writer understands both the problem and its practical remedies.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens by identifying two priority issues for U.S. policy in Latin America. It then devotes a section to economic analysis — covering regional growth rates, Argentina's recession, and Venezuela's oil dependency — followed by a section on human rights focusing on street children and child labor. Two recommendation sections follow, one per issue area, proposing a regional economic summit and a trade school dormitory program. A brief conclusion ties the recommendations back to U.S. interests.
Introduction: U.S. Advisory Priorities in Latin America
As a U.S. State Department advisor charged with counseling the President on Latin American policy, the two major issues I would identify as critical to U.S. interests in the region are the economy and human rights. The following sections explore each of these issues in detail and explain why they demand urgent attention.
Economic Instability in Latin America
The economic situation in Latin America is complex. Although the region's major economies grew at an average annual rate of 3.8% between 1900 and 1987 — roughly 30% faster than industrial countries and 20% faster than the United States — the benefits of that growth were largely offset by rapid population expansion. As a result, per capita income grew at only 1.7%, a rate lower than that of industrialized nations (Pfefferman, "Latin America in the 21st Century").
Argentina's economy, the third largest in Latin America, had been in recession for four consecutive years with no sign of recovery. The real GDP estimate for the year ending 2002 stood at -8.5%, and the consumer price index (inflation) reached 40% for the same period (Latin Watch, March 2002). The economic situation became especially dire in April 2002, when the Argentine government ordered all banks closed in an attempt to prevent a complete collapse of the country's financial system. This measure was also intended to secure emergency assistance from the International Monetary Fund. The crisis deepened the following day when Economy Minister Jorge Remes Lenicov resigned ("Argentine Economy Brought to Standstill," April 22, 2002).
Venezuela's economy was also under severe strain, with a real GDP of -3.5% and a consumer price index of 32.3% for the year ending 2002 (Latin Watch, March 2002). The political turmoil surrounding the resignation and return to power of President Hugo Chávez compounded the country's economic difficulties. As is the case throughout much of Latin America, the gap between rich and poor in Venezuela is enormous — estimates indicate that approximately 70% of Venezuelans live in poverty. A fundamental structural problem is the economy's lack of diversification: oil accounts for roughly 80% of total exports, meaning that when oil prices fall, economic stagnation follows. Greater diversification would reduce this dangerous dependence on a single commodity ("Uncertainty in Venezuela").
The economic conditions in Latin America are directly critical to U.S. interests because the United States has provided billions of dollars in aid — including military assistance — to the region over the past decade. Much of this aid has been necessitated by the very instability described above. Helping these economies achieve greater stability would benefit not only the United States but the global economy as a whole.
Human Rights: Street Children and Child Labor
One of the most pressing human rights issues in Latin America is the crisis of street children. These children are extremely poor, lack access to schooling and basic resources, and survive by begging, engaging in prostitution, or abusing drugs. Living on the streets exposes them to poverty, sexual abuse, and disease on a daily basis.
The economic problems detailed above contribute directly to the number of children living on the streets. As unemployment rises, so does the number of street children, because deteriorating economic conditions force children who might otherwise remain in school to drop out and seek income to help support their families. The employment options available to these children too often include prostitution and drug trafficking. In addition, many are subjected to forced child labor, working long hours in unhealthy conditions. It is estimated that 20 million children between the ages of five and fourteen work illegally in full-time jobs across Latin America ("Child Labor," Human Rights Watch).
Estimates of the total number of street children worldwide vary considerably. The United Nations places the figure somewhere between 30 million and 170 million. In Latin America, the average age of a street child is nine years old. In some countries, including Guatemala and Brazil, street children are rounded up, tortured, beaten, and killed by so-called "death squads" ("Street Children in Latin America"). In 1996, Guatemalan police officers were convicted of murdering street children aged ten and fourteen — a prosecution that required two years and sustained international pressure to bring to trial. Convictions of this kind remain extremely rare in the region ("Child Labor," Human Rights Watch).
This issue is crucial to U.S. interests because the education and nurturing of children is the most valuable investment any government can make in its own future prosperity. If America is genuinely committed to the long-term success of the Latin American region, it must be willing to address the full range of human rights violations affecting the region's children.
Conclusion
Addressing economic instability and the human rights crisis affecting street children are the two most critical priorities for U.S. policy in Latin America. By encouraging financial self-determination in the region and investing directly in the welfare of its most vulnerable citizens, the United States can help build the long-term stability that serves both Latin American and American interests.
Works Cited
"Argentine Economy Brought to Standstill." April 22, 2002.
"Child Labor." Human Rights Watch. http://www.hrw.org/children/labor.htm
Ehrenfeld, Rachel. "Latin America Today." Insight. November 6, 2000.
"Latin America." Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2001. Microsoft Corporation.
Latin Watch: Economies Newsletter. March 2002.
Pfefferman, Guy. "Latin America in the 21st Century." http://www.ifc.org/economics/speeches/april95.htm
Roberts, Kenneth M. "Party Systems and Electoral Volatility in Latin America: A Test of Economic, Institutional, and Structural Explanations." American Political Science Review. September 1999.
Sanchez, Enrique P. "Latin America: Shifting to New Paradigms." Business Economics. July 1999.
"Uncertainty in Venezuela." Center for Strategic and International Studies.
"Street Children in Latin America."
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