Thirty-four heads of state and government attended the fifth Summit of the Americas this past weekend (April 17-19) in Trinidad and Tobago. For the first time since the Summit of the Americas began in 1994, free trade was not the focus of the discussion. Rather, Cuba was a major topic of discussion, with some leaders hoping that Cuba will be invited to the next Summit of the Americas, as well as immigration.The tone of the Summit was notably different from previous Summits under the government of President Bush. While Obama proponed that he wanted a new, more mutual relationship between the US and Latin America, many leaders remain skeptical. Brazil's president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said prior to the Summit, “I’m going to ask the United States to take a different view of Latin America. We’re a democratic, peaceful continent, and the United States has to look at the region in a productive, developmental way, and not just think about drug
trafficking or organized crime.”
At the summit, Obama and many of the other presidents drew upon Obama's race for optimism for social progress in the region. Obama included comments about his race in his remarks about Latin America being the most unequal region of the world, and identifying himself with the lower classes that have notbenefit ted from US ties with the economic elite of Latin America. Obama intends to address this disparity between the rich and the poor. While Chavez sees potential for increasing understanding with the poor, Bolivian President Evo Morales was less optimistic. An official commented, "Morales said to [Obama], 'I can see publicly that there has been a change, that you have learned' -- and then he mentioned his race -- 'but that the actions of your people on the ground in my country are no different."*Pictures from Tim's El Salvador Blog and The Miami Herald.
- Leslie O'Bray, SHARE Grassroots Education and Advocacy Intern
