During his recent trip to Latin America, President Obama paid homage to the assassinated Archbishop Oscar Romero, an El Salvadoran hero famous for standing with the poor during the war-torn 1980s. Oscar Romero was assassinated while giving mass 31 years ago this week. In El Salvador, Obama acknowledged Romero’s heroism and bravery. However, what Obama failed to mention is that the archbishop’s assassination was planned and carried out by individuals trained by the United States at the School of the Americas (SOA).
The SOA is still in operation, training Latin American soldiers that become human rights abusers at an astonishing rate. And until Obama acknowledges the U.S.’s role in Oscar Romero’s tragedy and closes this school of assassins, the reputation of the United States will be tainted in Latin America.
Sincerely,
– Meg Brookover
This article appears in Mar 24-30, 2011.
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