Nicaragua 2018: The Triumph of a Sovereign Future

Stephen Sefton When reflecting on the significance of the defeat of the coup attempt in Nicaragua in 2018, it is easy to forget the regional context at that fateful moment and focus only on the terrible events in the national context. But it is also important to remember always that the ruling elites in the…

The Grenada Revolution: The Fruit, the Priest and the Jewel

Lautaro Rivara Grenadian Prime Minister Maurice Bishop (center) with a woman of Grenada’s Carriacou island. On March 13, 1979, on the island of Grenada, one of the most hopeful and unknown revolutions of our region began. This is the story of the small country that dared to make a great revolution. Grenada, or How to…

The Imbalance of San Pedro

Fabrizio Casari Pope Francis’ words against Sandinista Nicaragua have aroused astonishment in some quarters, consternation in others. In criticizing the decision of the judicial authority to impose a harsh prison sentence on Monsignor Rolando Alvarez, Francis has gone far beyond what ecclesial language permits, and far beyond what reasonableness suggests. He has accused President Daniel…

Women in Power in Nicaragua: “We’re Not Fighting for Space Anymore”

Becca Renk Women make up 50% of the members of the National Assembly. Here Assembly Deputy Flor Avellán (with microphone) speaks in a hearing. Photo: Becca Renk “Women are not fighting for space anymore,” declares Nicaraguan National Assembly Deputy Flor Avellán. “Now we have that space and we are empowered every day.” In recent years,…

Three Women Discover the Americas’ Best Kept Secret: Nicaragua!

Phoebe Sorgen, Jennifer Sullivan, and Dianne Blais The Alliance for Global Justice sent out an invitation to apply for “Women In Nicaragua: Power & Protagonism” Jan. 7-16, 2023.  How did this nation close the gender gap by 80% in just 15 years? Three women who had met in the Green Party decided to find out….

Gracias a Dios: The People’s Church in Nicaragua

Becca Renk Nicaragua remains a profoundly spiritual country with thriving religious communities, but they are not the religious communities that the traditional church would like to see. “We are not typical Catholics,” explains Yamil Ríos of the Saint Paul the Apostle Christian Base Community in Managua. “Because we don’t have a priest here, thanks be…

Nicaragua is Run by Women with a Revolutionary Feminism

As the Sandinista Revolution is finally able to make its platform a reality, Nicaragua has made significant achievements in healthcare, education, housing, renewable energy and food sovereignty, to name a few. One achievement that is starting to get more attention is the gain in equality for women. The Global Gender Gap Report for 2022 ranked…

‘Resistance is Continual in Nicaragua’

Roger McKenzie and Dan Kovalik A mural commemorating the third anniversary of the Nicaraguan revolution Photo: Susan Ruggles Roger McKenzie talks to US writer Dan Kovalik about why the people of Nicaragua need our support in their battle to determine their own future Dan Kovalik first became aware of a place called Nicaragua in the…

Women in Nicaragua: Power and Protagonism

Erica Caines “Like a lot of Black women, I have always had to invent the power my freedom requires: All my life I’ve been studying revolution. I’ve Been looking for it, pushing at the possibilities and waiting for that moment when there’s no more room for rhetoric, for research or for reason: when there’s only…

I Witnessed the Truth about Nicaragua

Wawen Ewimbi Contextual History of Struggle in Nicaragua 1909 – 1933: The US is cementing itself as the world’s police in the 20th century; the marines invaded Nicaragua in 1909 “to help stabilize the country”. The US occupied the land until 1933. In 1927, revolutionary political leader Augusto Nicolas Sandino began leading a tiny, fervent guerrilla army,…

Nicaragua’s Humane Response to the COVID-19 Crisis

Richie Merino Public health care worker from Nicaragua’s medical brigade administers vaccines going door to door. Photo: Canal4 When Nicaragua identified its first COVID-19 case on March 18, 2020, President Daniel Ortega understood that shutting down the economy would be catastrophic for the country’s informal farmworkers. In Nicaragua, three-quarters of all jobs are in farming….

For Corporate Media, Sandinistas’ Electoral Success Proves Their Repressiveness

John Perry The headline in the Washington Post ahead of Nicaragua’s local elections hinted at skepticism: “Nicaragua Ruling Party Seeks to Expand Hold in Local Votes” (11/6/22). The story itself, taken from an Associated Press report filed from Mexico City, was worse, framing the elections as a “farce” carried out “under the absolute control” of the governing Sandinista party….

Nicaragua in Latin America: The Invisible and Reality

Stephen Sefton In Nicaragua, the population lives the reality of the country’s revolutionary development, of the democratization of the economy, of the modernization of health and education systems, of the transformation of infrastructure and a dynamic reaffirmation of culture, identity and national dignity. However, abroad and in the same region, these tremendous socio-economic victories are…

Nicaragua: Bishop of the Money Gods

Fabrizio Casari The liberation of the Matagalpa cathedral, which had been occupied by Bishop Alvarez, ended an attempt to unleash a climate of confrontation in that city. The coup-supporting bishop is now in the capital, Managua, where he is under house arrest, but enjoying the presence of his family and visits from the prelates of…

Nicaragua Celebrates 43 Years of Revolution: The Clash Between Reality and Media Misrepresentation

John Perry July 19th is a day of celebration in Nicaragua: the anniversary of the overthrow of the Somoza dictatorship. But the international media will have it penciled in their diaries for another reason: it’s yet another opportunity to pour scorn on Nicaragua’s Sandinista government. We’ll hear again about how the government “clamps down on dissent,”[1] about its “political…

Nicaragua: Working with China

Latin America Review: We speak to Nicaragua’s Minister for International Relations & Greater Caribbean about China, the OAS, and high-quality rum!

Food Insecurity Increases in the U.S. While it Declines in Nicaragua Whose Socialist Government Has Defied U.S. Regime Change Designs

Nan McCurdy Workers at Houston food bank. [Source: time.com] Expansion of Public Sector in Nicaragua Has Improved Quality of Life for Everyone In 2018, 48% of U.S.-based churches had their own food-distribution ministry or supported efforts run by other churches or organizations such as food pantries or food banks. These faith-based ministries, unlike government programs, provide…

Fire from the Mountain: In Search of Omar Cabezas

Daniel Kovalik For years, I wondered about Omar Cabezas, the Sandinista guerilla who turned us on to the dream of revolution in the first place. Where was he now? Did he still support the Sandinistas and Daniel? Why aren’t the media talking to people like him? When I was in college in Dayton, Ohio in…