ABSTRACT
In 1992, the year of the much-tauted descubrimiento, as the European community prepared for the grand opening of its borders Spain decided to break the “friendship treaties” that for two hundred years granted entry without visa to all Spanish-speaking citizens from Latin America. The Spanish immigration service began deporting Latinos (of color), along with the usual Arab and African indeseables. Why? Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez, the legendary master negotiator of Latin American conflicts, was assigned the embarrassing role of gatekeeper for the new European economic community; and he assumed that role enthusiastically. In fact, he overdid it. Sadly, his triptych of dreams of grandeur, comprised by the Seville Expo, the Barcelona '92 Olympics, and the Comisión Quinto Centenario, turned out to be sad abortions of ferocious capitalism and nothing more.
