Central America | DR, Nicaragua, Guatemala

Module 6b covers the historical and contemporary affairs of Central America. The article from the University of Minnesota entitled, “Central America”, provides a quick but thorough breakdown of each country in the region: Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Panama. Information about the people and populations of each country is significant, with …

Central America | Mexican Revolution & PRI

Module 3.c deals with the 1910 Mexican Revolution and an overview of 20th century Mexican politics. Figures such as presidents Cardenas and de la Madrid are discussed, regarding their respective economic and political reforms. The Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) is also covered extensively, concerning its central position in 20th century Mexican politics.  The PRI was …

Central America | Nicaragua & Guatemala

Module 4.c covers the history of independent Nicaragua, along with insight into late 20th century Guatemala. United States involvement in Nicaragua is consequential to understanding the political history of the country, from “dollar diplomacy” to the emergence of the Sandinista movement. Guatemala, meanwhile, has been marked by genocide toward its indigenous populations.  Since independence from …

Caribbean | Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti & DR

Modules a and b discuss Caribbean history with emphasis on the Greater Antilles of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Revolution movements and related historical figures factor prominently in the histories of each nation. Each nation is also marked by its relations with European and United States interests. The early independent years of …

Caribbean | Trinidad & Tobago

Module 6c is about contemporary issues facing the Caribbean. One segment of the module, “Trinidad Tobago Race”, explores modern-day race relations in the country of Trinidad & Tobago. Like most countries in the region, these issues are interwoven with the historical legacy of European colonization.  Located in the Lesser Antilles, the island of Trinidad was …

Central America | Bourbon Reforms & Independence

Module 3.b details social and economic life in Spanish America before the independence movements of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The road to independence, especially in Mexico, is covered at length.  The Spanish American colonies were structured around a caste system; this provided a long period of social stability. Different social classes, based …

Central America | Colonial Mexico

 Module 3.a is about Mexican society after the Spanish conquest. The dynamics of race and class in Mexico City are important topics in the module. Additionally, the film La Otra Conquista is a resource dramatizing early Spanish conquests of Mexico with an emphasis on religion, conquest, and mothers.  “Mother” is a theme that reappears in …

Central America | 1524-1932

Modules 4.a and b describe the history and cultures of Central America, post-Spanish Conquest. The former Spanish colonies of the region are Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Panama (previously a territory of Colombia). Relationships between these states are covered in the modules, as well as the relationships with Spain and the United States.  …

Central America | Conquistadors

Module 2.c discusses the role of Spanish explorers more thoroughly. Columbus and Cortes are highlighted, along with their respective goals within the larger enterprise of Spanish conquest. The role of Black conquistadors are included in the module. Christopher Columbus fits into two historical processes; his exploits were relatively neglected in his time. Other exploratory successes …

World War II | Nuremberg & Tokyo War Trials

At the Yalta Conference in February 1945, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin agreed to hold Axis leaders accountable in a court of law. Later that year, following the defeat of Germany and Japan, that is what happened. While legal precedent was shaky, the Allies persevered in their pursuit of justice. The meaning of that justice, however, …