Description
Showdown at Punta del Este, 1961. The debate on free trade and development in Latin America. To check the spread of revolution in Latin America in 1961, Kennedy proposed the Alliance for Progress – a program for free trade and development in the Americas. Che Guevara, described at the time by Time magazine as "Cuba’s scraggle-bearded economic czar," condemned the plan as a new strategy to subjugate the continent to U.S. interests. The introduction describes the backstage drama that unfolded when Kennedy’s special envoy Richard Goodwin had a cordial encounter with Che at a late night party. The book includes never-before-published material, such as Che’s televised speech in which he outlines the issues posed by the Alliance for Progress.