Against Communism and Castroism: American Social Democrats and the Cold War Battle for the Soul of Latin America, 1954–67

This paper analyzes the involvement of American social democrats in Latin America in the 1950s and 1960s. Drawing on the institutional records of the Socialist Party of America and the personal papers of two “experts” on labor affairs in Latin America—Robert J. Alexander and Fanny Simon—the paper probes the networks cultivated by a self-avowed socialist, anti-imperialist movement that was very wary of communism. It pays particular attention to the involvement of Alexander and Simon in the foreign affairs apparatus of the American Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) and in the Inter-American Regional Organisation of Workers (ICFTU/ORIT). It argues that Alexander and Simon’s in-depth knowledge of both labor relations and Latin American affairs transformed them into influential actors in the hemispheric battle against communist in the region, the stakes of which were significantly raised after Fidel Castro aligned Cuba with the Soviet Union. While Alexander became a trusted advisor of AFL-CIO leaders Jay Lovestone and Serafino Romualdi, Simon resettled in Mexico City to work as coordinator of the ICFTU’s Inter-American Institute for Labor Studies. “Freedom” and “democracy” were not slogans for them, but deeply held beliefs, which needed to be instilled in every union leader of the Americas if the fight against communism and Castroism was to stand a chance. By tracing these individuals across a panoply of countries, the paper probes the transnational networks linking the anti-communist left in the Americas.