Short Essay on Latin America and its Revolutions

R.G. Williams

This short essay is a study of the history and politics of revolution in Latin America. Latin America, like most parts of the world, has a revolutionary history, a revolutionary politics, and a revolutionary tradition. This short essay is about the history and politics of the revolutionary tradition on the continent of South America— from the Capitalist Revolutions of the 19th century to the Socialist Revolutions of today. Revolution has been a key part of the history and politics there since the 1800s. Ever since the 19th century there have been revolutions and revolutionary struggles in Latin America.1 For Socialists, these revolutions have played a crucial role in the development and history of Latin America.2

All societies tend to produce revolutions and revolutionary traditions. This is certainly true of most modern societies produced by modern industry and by modern politics. Latin America, in its own ways, is no different. Latin America has both a history of revolution and a revolutionary tradition. The revolutionary tradition first emerged in the 1800s, with the first modern revolutions on that continent — in the reality of the breakdown of the old colonial system of Spain and Portugal and the emergence of Capitalism in Latin America. This revolutionary tradition continues today — under the reality of Capitalism and Imperialism in Latin America and under the reality of the struggle for Socialism. The revolutionary tradition in Latin America continues today — in the form of the struggle for Socialism and for Socialist Revolution.3

Latin America has a revolutionary tradition due to its history and its politics. The economic history and political history of Latin America, marked by feudalism, colonialism, early imperialism, economic problems and economic struggles, the rise of modern Capitalism and modern Imperialism, has produced the revolutionary struggle there – a major struggle, a historic struggle, a struggle which is still developing. Latin America, in its history and its politics, has produced a number of revolutions — both political and social revolutions.4

Latin America has two revolutionary traditions — one from above and one from below. The first revolutionary tradition is the Capitalist revolutionary tradition. The second revolutionary tradition is the Socialist revolutionary tradition. The Capitalist revolutionary tradition is revolution from above. The Socialist revolutionary tradition is revolution from below. The Capitalist revolutionary tradition was the bourgeois struggle of the 1800s, which freed Latin America from Spain and Portugal in the 1800s and which established the bourgeois republics in Latin America and the reality of Capitalism in Latin America. This struggle, against Bourbon Spain, remains a powerful historical example of the political tradition of revolution. The Socialist revolutionary tradition in Latin America is the revolutionary struggle for revolution in Latin America today – for a Socialist society, for a society based on the freedom of each and the freedom of all. This tradition emerged in the late 19th century and in the early 20th century, based on the revolutionary struggle of the workers and peasants of Latin America for Socialism. Every revolution and revolutionary struggle in the history and politics of Latin America, across the long centuries since the Spanish Conquest in the 1500s, fits into one or the other of these two revolutionary traditions. From the wars of independence in the 1800s, through the Mexican Revolution of 1910, to the struggles of the 20th century, to the struggle for revolution today, the social struggle in Latin America has been a struggle between the Capitalist revolutionary tradition and the Socialist revolutionary tradition. Every social revolution in the history of modern Latin America, like most revolutionary struggles in the modern world, has either been a Capitalist Revolution or a Socialist Revolution. So far, the majority of revolutions in Latin America have been bourgeois revolutions — which established the majority of Capitalist states and Capitalist societies across South America. The struggle, today, across the whole of the Americas, is the struggle for Socialism and Socialist Revolution.

Latin America has had many social revolutions and political revolutions over the last two centuries. These revolutions have clearly shaped the history and politics of every society on the continent of South and Central America – from the 1800s to the present day. It is impossible to really understand Latin America, today, without understanding the revolutions which shaped it in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The key revolutions in the history and politics of Latin America are the Revolutions of the 1800s, the Wars of Independence in the 1800s, the Mexican Revolution of 1910, the Cuban Revolution of 1959, the Chilean Revolution of 1970-1973, the Nicaraguan Revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, and the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela.

The Latin American Revolutions of 1800, and the Wars of Independence, were bourgeois revolutions – which established Capitalism in Latin America. The Cuban Revolution, the Chilean Revolution, the Nicaraguan Revolution, and the Bolivarian Revolution were Socialist revolutions – revolutions which struggled for Socialism and freedom in Latin America.

The fact that Latin America has two revolutionary traditions shapes the political struggle for Revolution and for Socialism today. The fact that the Capitalist revolutionary tradition and the Socialist revolutionary tradition both exist in Latin America still impacts the history and politics of Latin America — especially in terms of modern politics.

The struggle of the Left in Latin America has often been shaped by the legacy of Capitalist Revolution, and by the legacy of previous struggles for Socialist Revolution.5 This is key to understanding the current-day struggle for Socialism in Latin America. The legacy of the past shapes the contemporary struggle.

The Capitalist Revolutions of the 1800s established Capitalism in Latin America.6 Capitalism in Latin America emerged from these revolutions. This reality of Capital and Capitalism is, for most of Latin American politics, the social reality of Latin America today. Despite the limits of Capitalism in Latin America, the revolutions of the 1800s were progressive developments – they pushed history forward. This revolution of Capital and Capitalism was a slow process — but it still established the modern social structure and society we see in Latin America today. This revolution, like all Capitalist revolutions, has produced the basis for Socialism. The Capitalist Revolutions, against Bourbon Spain, against Portugal, against Imperialism, failed to achieve much social progress, in real human terms, but they were progressive. Indeed, they firmly established bourgeois societies, and they did establish the reality of social revolution and social change in Latin America. The Capitalist Revolutions also had the effect of creating the precedent for Socialist Revolution — both in the 1800s, the 1900s, and for today.

The struggle for Socialist Revolution has yet to achieve victory in Latin America. The Left of Latin America and the working class has obviously struggled – but has yet to achieve Socialism. Since the 1800s there have been numerous struggles and revolutions attempting to achieve Socialism and Socialist Revolution across Latin America. Many Socialists can easily point to examples of working-class struggles, working-class rebellions, and working-class revolutions in Latin America — across the last two centuries. The best examples of these attempts at Socialist Revolution in Latin America, from Cuba to Chile, from Brazil to Peru, remain vital parts of understanding the struggle for Socialism in Latin America. There is a revolutionary Socialist tradition in Latin America, even today, and that tradition will be vital to the struggle for Socialism and Socialist Revolution in Latin America — both today and in the future.

The effect of revolution and the revolutionary tradition on Latin America is, of course, the reality of the continent itself today. It has been shaped by the course and results of its revolutionary tradition. How can this tradition be understood today? How can this tradition be understood in terms of understanding the continent and the possibility for Socialism and Socialist Revolution today? Such questions are important — because Latin America also has a history of counter-revolutions, military repression, wars, and coups, alongside its history of revolutions.

Latin American politics, both in the 20th century and today, has been based on the relationship between revolution and counter-revolution. Most of the reactionary states, dictatorships, and coups in the history of Latin America, from Chile to Brazil, from Uruguay to Argentina, from the 1900s to the 2000s, occurred as attempts to prevent further social revolution in Latin America — or to prevent Socialist Revolution. The military dictatorships of the Right, from the 1920s to 1990s, were based on preventing Socialist Revolution. The recent coups and attempted coups of Latin American politics, in Venezuela in 2002, in Honduras in 2007, in Brazil in 2016, in Venezuela in 2019, and in Bolivia in 2019, show that the politics of counter-revolution always remain active — in attempting to prevent social change and social revolution.

The ruling classes of Latin America, today, remain determined to prevent further social revolutions and political revolutions. This especially includes preventing the possibility of Socialist Revolution. The social struggle in most areas, from Brazil to Venezuela, remains focused around this dynamic — of revolution and counter-revolution.

The Capitalist revolutionary tradition in Latin America began in the 1800s — with the struggle to achieve independence from Imperial Spain and Imperial Portugal, and to achieve both Capitalism and bourgeois republics in Latin America. The revolutions of the early 19th century, from 1808 to 1833, formed the basis of the Capitalist Revolution in Latin America and the beginning of Capitalism in Latin America. Between 1808 and 1833, Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela, achieved their independence from Spain. In 1822, Brazil achieved independence from Portugal. These revolutions ended the old power of Bourbon Spain in Latin America and began a new period in the history of Latin America — effectively a period of Capitalist Revolution. This Capitalist revolutionary tradition established, also, the modern social structure and modern social struggle in Latin America — as Capitalism furthered itself in the 19th century and in the 20th century in Latin America, upon the states established by the revolutions and wars for Latin American Independence.

The Socialist revolutionary tradition in Latin America began in the late 1800s and the early 1900s. This tradition began with the emergence of a serious working-class politics and a Socialist politics. In the 20th century, and today, the social struggle from this Socialist revolutionary tradition has yet to achieve the full Socialist Revolution. Yet the social struggle, as in the 1800s and 1900s, shows the potential for Socialism in Latin America — as long as the working class itself is capable of struggling for Socialism. Most of the great social revolutions and political revolutions of Latin America in the 20th century contained the potential for Socialism. Any real social revolution in Latin America, today, can only come from the Socialist tradition of Revolution. It is the only force which can achieve real social revolution now – real social change.

The nature of Latin America’s revolutionary tradition has shaped the reality of Latin America today. Latin America, for better and for worse, is the product of that revolutionary tradition. Latin America is the product of Capitalist Revolution, Capitalist Counter-Revolution, and the current struggle for Socialism. Latin America, like societies everywhere, needs Socialist Revolution and it needs Socialism.

Latin America, today, clearly needs to change. Any change to the societies and states there, today, will rely on the struggle and victory of the Socialist revolutionary tradition of Latin America. It will depend on the ability of the Left in Latin America to struggle for that revolutionary tradition of Socialism in Latin America.

The impact and legacy of Latin America’s revolutionary traditions means that Latin America remains a place where revolution and social revolution is possible. Latin America remains an area of contest and conflict between the Capitalist revolutionary tradition and the Socialist revolutionary tradition, between Capitalism and Socialism. Indeed, there is still great potential for social revolution today — in the form of Socialist Revolution. Indeed, there is still the reality of social revolution there today — as the working class, across the continent of South America and Central America, struggles to achieve its own visions and its own politics of Socialism and Socialist Revolution. The social struggle today, a struggle inherited from history and politics, is the social struggle between Capitalism and Socialism. It is also a social struggle inherited from the history and politics of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries — both of which were revolutionary centuries in the history and politics of Latin America. The social struggle between Capitalist Revolution and Socialist Revolution, as in most parts of the world, is also particularly fierce in Latin America — given the history and politics of the last two centuries, and the brutalities of social struggle and social revolution in history in general. Latin America, like most continents, has a serious revolutionary history and a serious revolutionary politics — which ensures that the social struggle for Socialism in Latin America today continues on from the struggles of the past.

The struggle for Socialism and Socialist Revolution helped to shape Latin America in the 20th century. The struggle for Socialism and Socialist Revolution still shapes Latin America today. That struggle still continues today — despite the shortcomings and setbacks of previous struggles for Socialism. The Cuban Revolution of 1959 was probably the best example of an attempt at a Socialist Revolution in the history of Latin America — despite its real faults and real shortcomings as an example of a Socialist Revolution. The Chilean Revolution of 1970-1973 was probably the other great example of an attempted Socialist Revolution – but it was crushed before it was really able to achieve better social results, in the horrific Fascist coup of 1973. These have been followed by other attempts at Socialist Revolution in Latin America — from Nicaragua in the 1980s, to the EZLN in Mexico in the 1990s, to the Venezuelan Revolution of the 2000s. So far each of these revolutions, even when led by the Left, have been limited as examples of Socialist Revolutions — even in the context of Latin America. The Cuban Revolution, while heroic, did not spark off a continental Socialist Revolution — as many had hoped in the 1960s. The Chilean Revolution was crushed in the coup of September 11, 1973. The Nicaraguan Revolution was defeated in the reality of the Nicaraguan civil war and the counter-revolution of the Contras. The Venezuelan Revolution, so far, has been undermined by the limits of Chavezism, the limits of Bolivarianism, and by American reaction, but still has the potential, even today, to achieve a social revolution: a Socialist Revolution. The Venezuelan Revolution is one of the great hopes of modern politics – both for the Left and for Socialism – but it has many problems. Indeed, the Venezuelan Revolution shows the real difficulty of converting a Left-Nationalist Revolution into a Socialist Revolution. The social struggle in Venezuela today, and the fate of the Venezuelan Revolution, shows the importance of achieving a Socialist Revolution there for the future of Latin America. Today Latin America remains a key theatre for possible social revolution — from Brazil to Venezuela. The legacy of attempting a Socialist Revolution in Latin America in the 20th century is the legacy of a long struggle — one highlighted by the struggle of the working class of Latin America — but it is a struggle which has yet to achieve the decisive struggle for Socialism in Latin America. Any struggle for Socialism in Latin America today will have to take stock of the revolutionary legacy of the 20th century struggles for Socialism — both in terms of history and politics.

The attempts at Socialist Revolution in Latin America, in the 20th century, were heroic, but they failed to achieve the decisive revolutionary struggle for Socialist Revolution in Latin America. Essentially the struggle continues in Latin America today. The struggle for a Socialist Revolution in Latin America continues today — whether in Cuba, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, or Venezuela. The struggle continues from the bottom of the continent to the top of the continent. Any struggle for Socialism in Latin America today, from the Left or from the working class, from Venezuela to Brazil, from Cuba to Mexico, is to be welcomed. These struggles are crucial, because Latin America is vital to changing the world.7

Thinking about the Socialist Revolution in Latin America is almost as important as making the Socialist Revolution in Latin America. Thinking and making the Latin American Revolution, today, requires a firm grasp of the history and politics of Latin America. The revolutionary politics of the past are vital to the construction of the revolutionary politics of the present. Revolutionary experience is the basis for any revolutionary practice.

Notes

1. R. Debray, Latin America: The Long March, (1965)
2. R. Debray, Latin America: The Long March, (1965)
3. E. Galeano, Open Veins of Latin America, (1971)
4. E. Galeano, Open Veins of Latin America, (1971)
5. R. Debray, Problems of Revolutionary Strategy in Latin America, (1967)
6. E.J. Hobsbawm, The Age of Revolution: 1789-1848, (1962)
7. R. Debray, Latin America: The Long March, (1965)

(2019)

Categorised in: Article

This post was written by R.G. Williams