Latin America’s underdevelopment stems from its early insertion into world capitalism.

Evidence

The discovery of gold and silver in America, the extirpation, enslavement and entombment in mines of the aboriginal population, the beginning of the conquest and looting of the East Indies, the turning of Africa into a warren for the commercial hunting of black-skins, signaled the rosy dawn of the era of capitalist production. — Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the…, 82 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

The origin of this myth is based in Europe’s transformation and its subsequent rise to global dominance. Up until 1500 or so, Europe was a marginal player on the world stage relative to other great powers (such as the Ottomans, Chinese, and Indians). It overcame its backwardness thanks in no small part to the rise of capitalism. The question of the origins of capitalism is a complex and hotly debated issue, and I will not discuss it here. For our purposes, let me state that the growth of capitalism conferred various advantages—technological, military, communication, and so on—which led first to European dominance over world trade and then eventually to colonialism and imperialism. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 87 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Underdeveloped nations exist to channel surplus toward wealthy metropolises.; Latin American underdevelopment results from articulation of modes, not inevitable capitalist transformation; Applied development economics theory produced disastrous results across Latin America (+6 more)

Related

• Latin American underdevelopment results from capitalist incorporation dating to the sixteenth century (similarity 0.84)
• Underdeveloped nations uniquely channel surplus to the world metropolis (similarity 0.84)
• Applied development economics theory produced disastrous results across Latin America (similarity 0.84)
• Latin American underdevelopment results from articulation of modes, not inevitable capitalist transformation (similarity 0.84)
• Gunder Frank held that Latin America was capitalist since the sixteenth-century conquest (similarity 0.83)
• Western wealth was built by actively creating underdevelopment elsewhere (similarity 0.82)
• Europe was a marginal global player before capitalism (similarity 0.81)
• Colonialism and capitalism have been entangled since the sixteenth century (similarity 0.80)
• Underdeveloped nations exist to channel surplus toward wealthy metropolises. (similarity 0.79)
• Overaccumulated wealth drove imperialism by enlisting an unprincipled surplus mob (similarity 0.79)
• Capitalism conserving non-capitalist modes produces racial and colonial ideologies. (similarity 0.79)
• Capitalist accumulation was built on colonial conquest and enslavement. (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• The dependency school explained underdevelopment as a structural effect of the world economy. #expands (0.80)
• Capitalist accumulation was built on colonial conquest and enslavement. #corroborates (0.40) — Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the…, 82
• Europe was a marginal global player before capitalism #complicates (0.30) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 87