This essay examines the US government’s attempts throughout the 20th century to
improve its relations with Latin America. It shows that most of these efforts were
motivated by external factors such as wars or conflicts with other world powers. Although genuine, these attempts were ultimately subordinate to the United States’
geopolitical and economic foreign policy priorities. Racial elements and, especially,
the ignorance of US policymakers dedicated to Latin American affairs, played
a role in limiting the success of US initiatives. The essay concludes that a world
power’s good intentions alone do not qualify as behaving like a good neighbor.
Keywords: Interventionism, Economic interests, Geopolitical interests, Ideological
Determinism, Racism.