Jeremy Corbyn Has a History of Support for the Latin American Left 14

By: vivian on 3:33 PM

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Jeremy Corbyn Has a History of Support for the Latin American Left:

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Since Corbyn’s shocking ascent to a Labour Party once ruled by Tony Blair and his U.S-loyal neoliberal clique, the leftist has been relentlessly attacked for his past positions on issues ranging from his opposition to atomic weaponry to his solidarity with the Palestinian people against Israeli settler-colonialism, his opposition to apartheid in South Africa and, consequently, the insinuation that he has links to “extremists” and alleged “terrorists.”

While Corbyn has been called the British equivalent of liberal Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, the comparison doesn’t quite do justice to the British politician’s progressive stances. He has proven himself to harbor progressive attitudes that are unacceptable to many in the U.K., where British ruling figures and well-off British workers alike cling to colonial attitudes toward the Global South rooted in an identity many characterize as essentially “imperialist.” The Labour Party has hardly been different — while it has sought to look out for the interests of British workers to some extent, the party has also historically supported the repression of anti-colonial uprisings in Burma, India, Iraq, Nigeria and Palestine while harboring pro-war and pro-U.S. attitudes.

“I first went to Latin America when I was 18, to Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile,” Corbyn explained. “I was fascinated by the history, fascinated by the pre-Hispanic history, by the Indigenous cultures and Indigenous languages.” At the time, he supported Salvador Allende’s popular front government in Chile, which left a deep impression on the British Labour movement and on Corbyn himself, showing the dangers of U.S. hostility toward popular movements in the Global South. After the CIA-backed Sept. 11, 1973, overthrow of Allende and subsequent consolidation of military rule under dictator Augusto Pinochet’s junta, Corbyn united with many among the thousands of political refugees who sought refuge in the U.K.

A fluent Spanish speaker, Corbyn spent the 1980s campaigning for solidarity with Chile, Argentina, Nicaragua, Cuba, El Salvador and other struggles for democracy, justice and human rights in Latin America. In 2015, Corbyn was a keynote speaker at a rally in support of Venezuela that called for the U.S. to end its sanctions on Venezuela, noting that Latin America needs “solidarity … not a dependence on the USA.” He also hailed the country’s achievements in securing housing, health care and education for the poor while boosting Venezuela’s stature in global affairs.

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