Guatemala: ‘Why Leahy Hates Us’

For years, Guatemalans have asked why a Democratic U.S. senator would systematically try to make public policy for Guatemala from his congressional seat in Washington, D.C. and wondered just how the Guatemalan nongovernmental organizations have poisoned the mind, heart and soul of an imperial senator — with the taxes of the U.S. citizens themselves, oddly enough. And from that position of power, Senator Leahy is bullying the Guatemalans.

I thought that I might be in some way racist toward Leahy, but I have ruled that out; his origin from the powerful Georgetown, from the Jesuits no less, could never have taught him such barbarities.

It also cannot be the case that he has come to Guatemala for a few hours and therefore thinks he knows us. If only he lived down here, maybe he would have a different perspective and his level of hatred and bullying would die down.

Nor do I believe that it was the impact of some Batman villain, movies of which he is a fan and in which he even had a cameo role.

Perhaps it might be more fruitful to look in the explanations of E. Wallerstein and his world systems theory. I mean this need that “core” colonial empires have of showing their strength to the surrounding nations so that they never forget who is boss.

However, I find a contradiction in all of this: On one hand, the empire forces us to carry the heavy burden of a war on drugs — hence the recent visit from Brownfield — but on the other hand, from the core, they do everything possible so that the war is carried out with truncheons, rocks and shaman dances, not as the drug mafias dictate.

But it is a joke, between one — Brownfield — wanting all Guatemalans to go out and fight against “drug trafficking and associated crimes” like some sort of African tribe, and the other, Leahy, doing balancing acts in the empire’s Senate so that Guatemala will start a little war on drugs with nothing but their nails and bare fists.

Of course, there is a story behind Leahy’s hatred toward Guatemala, and a long story at that. The most surprising thing about the emotion that hearing the word “Guatemala” conjures up in him is that he has only ever been willing to listen to a part, the minimal amount, a glimmer of truth among so many lies, of what the Guatemalan NGOs present to him.

Could someone in Vermont please ask Leahy why he hates Guatemala so much? He will have his reasons and maybe if we know them we will understand, even if we do not justify it.

I suppose, and only suppose, that trade between Guatemala and Vermont must be enormous, such that he must look to “protect” his fellow Vermonters — as any good commercialized pro-welfare Democrat would. Or perhaps his constituency demands that Leahy have both eyes on Guatemala.

As long as we Guatemalans exist, Leahy will hate us. So should we expect any love from him? Not in any way, shape or form. But I am curious as to why a man from Vermont, thousands of kilometers away from Guatemala, has decided for some political reason to bully us from the empire’s Senate.

All said and done, Brownfield and Leahy are cast from the same mold.