What I’ve Been Reading Lately…

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“Open Veins of Latin America,” Eduardo Galeano

   “Open Veins of Latin America” is for any (and every) person who doesn’t realize the negative effect that the rest of the world, but mainly Europe and the U.S., has had on Latin America. All of the racial and economic problems that Latin and South America have today are consequences of the way that white people have taken advantage of the continent since their arrival. Beginning with Columbus and continuing to the PRESENT DAY, white people have done nothing but harm the people and countries they have had contact with. Although the tactics have changed (from rape and murder and disease to strategic economic policy only benefitting the U.S.) the consequences for the people and countries of Latin and South America have been the same. Although heavy on jargon and at times dry, this book continues to be a necessary read to understand the current situation of the world.

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“1984,” George Orwell

   I think the large majority of people, through either reading this book or hearing about it, could give you a brief summary of what it is about. The reason I read it now, for the first time, is mainly because of the political times we have put ourselves in, and the importance of remembering that, with hope, these four years will not define us as individuals or us as a nation. What I gathered from reading this novel is that we should never let go of the things that make us us, and that we should always remember them. As soon as we forget who we are, it’s all over, a statement that is reflected well in the ending of Orwell’s classic book. As Erich Fromm’s afterword so succinctly states: “One can react to this picture in two ways: either by becoming more hopeless and resigned, or by feeling there is still time, and by responding with greater clarity and courage.”

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