Latin America Today

By Washington Office on Latin AmericaNews News Commentary Politics

Latin America Today episodes

May 01, 2023 "We can't deter our way out of this": a view from the Honduras-Nicaragua border
WOLA staff report from Honduras after a visit to the border with Nicaragua, where we witnessed a historic migration flow. As government and service providers struggle to manage this result of a series of policy failures, it's not clear what lies ahead.
37 min
April 10, 2023 "The days of hoping for a magical solution are long gone": Geoff Ramsey on Venezuela
A conversation about the political and humanitarian moment in Venezuela, efforts to resolve the country's crisis, and the U.S. role, with Geoff Ramsey, who recently departed WOLA's Venezuela Program and is now a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council.
48 min
March 03, 2023 Guatemala: An Eroding Democracy Approaches New Elections
Guatemala's deteriorating democracy is approaching June elections with disqualified candidates, imprisoned or exiled judicial workers and journalists, and a U.S. policy that's hard to pin down. Analysis from WOLA Central America Program Director Ana María Méndez and Council on Foreign Relations Latin America Fellow Will Freeman.
49 min
December 20, 2022 Peru's Turmoil and "the Danger of a Much Deeper Crisis"
December 2022 in Peru has seen a president's failed attempt to dissolve Congress and subsequent jailing, and now large-scale protests met with a military crackdown. Senior Fellow Jo-Marie Burt explains what's at stake in a deeply divided nation.
46 min
December 06, 2022 Unprotected at the U.S.-Mexico Border: Reporting Back from Texas and Arizona
WOLA staff spent a mid-November week visiting several points along the U.S.-Mexico border. We spoke to many migrants stranded in Mexico, in shelters and in rustic camps, unable to seek protection in the United States. What will happen if and when Title 42 ends?
55 min
September 19, 2022 Mexico Sends in the Troops: Stephanie Brewer on the Militarization of Public Security
Mexico has been increasing its armed forces' role in public security for many years, but the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador has just taken it to historic new lengths. WOLA's Mexico Program director, Stephanie Brewer, explains.
47 min
July 11, 2022 "What happens with the Petro government could become a model for engaging with the region"
WOLA's director for the Andes, Gimena Sánchez, was in Colombia during the historic June 19 election that sent Gustavo Petro and Francia Márquez to the presidency and vice-presidency. We discuss this victory's significance and the big challenges ahead.
53 min
June 21, 2022 Migration and the Summit of the Americas
Adam, Stephanie Brewer, Maureen Meyer, and Lesly Tejada discuss regional migration and the Summit of the Americas, which took place Los Angeles earlier in June. The four analyze the political implications of the Summit and their recent travel to the border areas.
52 min
January 19, 2022 "We believe there are multiple armed conflicts": Kyle Johnson on security in Colombia
Recent violence in the northeastern region of Arauca shows the complicated, fragmented nature of Colombia's armed conflict—or "conflicts," as security analyst Kyle Johnson calls it in this clear, nuanced explanation of security challenges in early 2022.
1 hr 7 min
December 07, 2021 Is Mexico Prepared to be a Country of Refuge?
More than 120,000 migrants have applied for protection in Mexico in 2021. We discuss Mexico's difficult transition to being a country of refuge with Gretchen Kuhner of IMUMI, Daniel Berlin of Asylum Access Mexico, and Maureen Meyer and Stephanie Brewer of WOLA.
59 min