Latin America, a disputed territory

The Latin American Council of Social Sciences is promoting the documentary "Latin America, Territory in Dispute," directed by Nicolás Trotta and Esteban Cuevas, which delves into the struggle for hegemony on the continent between conservative forces and popular movements. This audiovisual record of a political era in the continent highlights the advance of right-wing forces, both economically and politically.

From the south of the Rio Grande to the Strait of Magellan, 38.696 km traveled, 7 countries visited, 2 years of filming, 40 interviews with the top political, social and cultural figures of the region to tell the story of a continent in dispute: Latin America.

This documentary road movie begins in March 2016, serving as the starting point for a journey through the continent's main countries. Alongside figures such as Evo Morales, Pepe Mujica, Rafael Correa, Fernando Lugo, Dilma Rousseff, Lula da Silva before his arrest, and other prominent political and social leaders, the film reflects on why, today in Latin America, after more than a decade of popular governments in which the dream of a united Latin America envisioned by Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín seemed possible, reactionary forces have once again taken hold.

Over the past four years, the balance of power within the continent has shifted. Economic elites have been able to adapt and regroup in the face of the new reality that has taken them by surprise. The loss of their privileges would not come without a price; those who consider themselves the owners could not allow the system to be undermined. It was necessary to create the conditions to halt the changes and weaken the popular governments. They found the Achilles' heel of the transformative model in a certain inability to implement substantive reforms to strengthen democracy.

A new wave of coups was set in motion. These coups were different from those of past decades, which had been carried out and sustained through the repressive power of the Armed Forces. In this new era, the Military Party was replaced by a sector of the judiciary that established itself as the Judicial Party, and which enjoyed the active support of the most influential media outlets. These media outlets also worked to achieve in some countries what had previously seemed impossible: the most conservative right wing coming to power through popular vote in free elections.

In this dispute the right wing is advancing but, as former Uruguayan President Pepe Mujica said, “this reactionary wave is going to fail, it will never definitively triumph, because ours will not definitively triumph either.”