NACLA Radio

In December 1823, U.S. president James Monroe delivered his State of the Union address in which he coined what would become known as the Monroe Doctrine. It was a framework that would later be used to legitimize U.S. intervention up and down the hemisphere. But in those early days, Monroe’s statements were applauded by Latin American leaders as supporting their independence struggles. They were even embraced at Simón Bolívar’s Panama Congress of 1826.In this episode, host Michael Fox travels to see what’s left of the former site of the Panama Congress, and then dives in to the past and present with Yale historian Greg Grandin.They look at Simón Bolívar’s Panama Congress. But also Monroe and the legacy of U.S. imperialism in the region up until today, including U.S.-backed death squads, the Iran Contra scandal, Manifest Destiny, and so much more.Under the Shadow is an investigative narrative podcast series that walks back in time, telling the story of the past by visiting momentous places in the present. In ea