NYU professor of Latin American history and Nation writer Greg Grandin speaks with GRITtv‘s Laura Flanders about the constant political actions happening in Latin America. According to Grandin, the political unrest in Honduras that began a year ago with the ouster of President Manuel Zelaya is far from ancient history, not least because Reporters Without Borders says Honduras is one of the deadliest countries for the media.

Later in the clip, Flanders asks for Grandin’s insight on the Colombian situation where workers are taking over and unionizing facilities owned by BP. She says that 9,000 people have been killed while fighting for union rights. Grandin says that there is an alliance between repression and resource extraction in Latin America that should not be overlooked, and that "here in the United States, there’s more willingness to go along with corporate power."

Finally, elaborating on his recent Nation article, "Glenn Beck, America’s Historian Laureate," Grandin says that Beck’s is a "particular brand of Americanism that can’t escape a tourette-like reference to race," and that Beck’s reaction to Obama’s handling of the BP crisis has cemented more than ever the fact that the Fox host “lives in an alternative universe.”

—Melanie Breault