ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the motivations for Pan-Americanism as formulated by the United States government at the end of the nineteenth century, culminating with the establishment of the Pan-American Union in 1910. The chapter explores how the Pan-American Union and its post-World War II successor, the Organization of American States (OAS), were used by the United States to further its foreign policy objectives in the Western Hemisphere, while at the same time examining the motivations of Latin American governments for participating in such an asymmetrical arrangement. The chapter examines historical incidents manifesting U.S. hegemony in the context of the inter-American system, including the isolation of Cuba and the invasions of the Dominican Republic in 1965, Grenada in 1983, and Panama in 1989. There is also a discussion of the limitations of U.S. hegemony, including examples of containment, contestation, and other OAS nations’ proposals countering initiatives and actions emanating from Washington, DC.
