Covid-19 in Latin America – Update 14, 22 October
Covid-19 in Latin America update 14: Argentina reaches 800,000 cases, Brazil agrees to test Russia’s ‘Sputnik’ vaccine, Chileans vote 'Apruebo' with social distancing in place, Colombia sees increase in violence against LGBTQ+, Cuba reopens 13/15 provinces to tourists.
Chile: Atacama indigenous vs Covid-19 and the mines
This is a condensed version of a longer article written in July 2020. It was edited for LAB by Emily Gregg.
Indigenous territories in Latin...
Protecting Los Cedros + Bringing BHP/Vale to book
This is the first post in the new London Mining Network blog, a partnership initiative between LAB and LMN. It contains a roundup of...
Chile Edges Closer to Historic Vote
Chile's constitution is a legacy of the Pinochet dictatorship and has come to symbolise the embedded inequalities that sparked a year of mounting popular...
Argentina: campaigning for inclusion during the Covid-19 lockdown
Queer Tango teacher and LGBTQ+ activist Edgardo Fernández Sesma tells LAB’s Nina Meghji about navigating the digital space, the impact of lockdown on Buenos Aires’ elder residents, and the economic implications for Buenos Aires’ tango community post Covid-19.
Uruguay’s paradox: will the pandemic accelerate neo-liberal policies?
To many citizens' dismay, Uruguay's exemplary handling of the pandemic could help pave the way for the Lacalle Pou administration to pass new, seemingly neoliberal, legislation.
Chile: a polarised September on the eve of a crucial plebiscite
As the date for Chile's constitutional plebiscite nears, the country is increasingly polarised. Polls, however, show a large majority in favour of a new constitution being drawn up by a constituent assembly of citizens, not a joint citizen-Congress committee.
Bolsonaro — the new Jim Jones
President Bolsonaro is the new 'Jim Jones', says Jan Rocha, comparing the Brazilian president to the cult leader who led his followers in a mass suicide in Guayana in 1978.
Venezuela’s wealth is being plundered
The political stalemate in Venezuela leaves the country wide open to plunder by international creditors, banks and vulture funds. Meanwhile, the country cannot spend its own money to combat Covid-19.
Brazil: September 7 — day of death
'We now realise that Brazil has always chosen death. But never, at any other moment of its history, has the country reached this level of perversion under the formal title of democracy.'