Transcript The Big Stick to Latin America

The Big Stick to Latin
America
Chapter 22, Section 4
By the late 1800’s the United States had
built an empire that stretched from the
Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean
 The nation needed a shorter, quicker
route between the two oceans

Isthmus: 50 miles wide in panama
separating the Pacific Ocean and the
Caribbean Sea
 A canal through the isthmus would cut the
journey from San Francisco to New York
City by 8,000 miles.

“I Took the Canal Zone”
Theodore Roosevelt was eager to build a
canal in Panama
 Panama was part of Columbia
 Secretary of State, John Hay, offered
Columbia $10 million cash plus $250,000a
year to rent a strip of land across the
Panama
 Columbia turned down the offer

Turned Down by Columbia

Roosevelt was furious.
◦ He knew many Panamanians wanted the canal
because it would make Panama a crossroads
for world trade
◦ He also knew many Panamanians wanted to
break away from Columbia
◦ Roosevelt made it clear to the rebels in Panama
that the United States would support them
Turned Down by Columbia





The Nashville, an American warship drooped
anchor in the port of Colon, panama.
The next day panama rebels rebelled against
Columbia
American forces stopped Columbia from
crushing the revolt
Panama declared itself an independent
republic
Panama quickly agreed to let the U.S. build a
canal on terms similar to what the U.S. had
offered Columbia
Revolution in Panama

Building the canal was difficult
Defeating a Tiny Enemy
Engineer’s biggest challenge was cutting
through miles of rock
 Doctor’s biggest challenge was the
mosquito carrying malaria and yellow
fever

Deadly diseases

Yellow jack or yellow fever caused fewer
deaths than malaria but yellow fever
victims suffered horribly
Yellow Jack
In Panama workers had to find every pool
of water where mosquitoes lay their eggs
 A small army sprayed tons of insecticide
and spread oil on still water to kill
mosquito eggs
 1906 Yellow fever had disappeared from
Panama

A breakthrough





40,000 workers struggled digging the ditch
Most were black from the West Indies
The new waterway helped the trade of many
nations
American merchants benefited the most
because they could now ship goods cheaply
to South America and Asia
Many Latin American nations were bitter at
the way the US had gained control of the
canal
Digging the Big Ditch

Americans had to police the surrounding
premises of the panama Canal
Policing Latin America
Roosevelt Corollary: Theodore Roosevelt
claimed the right to intervene in Latin
America to preserve law and order
 The US could force Latin Americans to pay
its debt to foreign nations and keep those
nations from meddling in Latin American
affairs.

Expanding the Monroe Doctrine
1905 Dominican Republic could not repay
its debts the US took control of its
finances and paid its debt
 Most Latin Americans strongly resented
this interference in their affairs

Expanding the Monroe Doctrine
President Williams Howard Taft, TR’s
successor, also favored a strong American
role in Latin America
 He urged American investors to invest in
Latin America

Dollars for bullets

Dollar diplomacy: idea that it is better to
trade then to warships to expand
◦ American investors helped build roads,
railroads, and harbors in Latin America
◦ Theses improvement increased trade

Dollar Diplomacy problems
◦ American businesses often meddled in the
political affairs of host countries and used
military force to keep order
◦ Latin Americans denounced these invasions
Dollars for bullets
American invested about $1 billion in
Mexico to develop mines, oil wells,
railroads, and ranches
 Most Mexican were poor working the land
of a few wealthy families
 Mexican groups revolted

Troubles in Mexico
Wilson stayed neutral hoping Mexico
would develop a democratic government
 1914 Mexico arrested several American
sailors
 Wilson ordered the US Navy to occupy
Veracruz, a Mexican port

Wilson’s policy
General Francisco “Pancho” Villa a rebel
leader raided the town of Columbus, New
Mexico, killing 17 Americans
 General John J. Pershing: sent by Wilson
in to New Mexico to capture Villa

Wilson’s policy
Pershing led an army of 6,000 soldiers
 Mexico protested the invasion
 Wilson withdrew the troops
 The episode poisoned relations with
Mexico for years

Pershing’s raid