Latinos and US Foreign Policy

How do the foreign policy priorities of Latino Americans relate to U.S. foreign policy in general and U.S. policy toward Latin America in particular? Public policy elites and the general U.S. public doubt the depth of Latino patriotism, suspecting Latinos of representing their homelands' interests over and above those of the U.S. Through a series of studies surveying Latinos throughout the U.S., this book demonstrates that Latino Americans are more like other Americans with respect to foreign policy than is popularly assumed. At the same time, differences between and among various Latino communities (e.g., those with ties to Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, and Mexico) exist, and may be a source of growing Latino political power-perhaps more relevant to domestic politics than to foreign policy.

Rodolfo O. de la Garza is vice-president of the TomOs Rivera Policy Institute and professor of political science at Columbia University. Harry P. Pachon is president of the TomOs Rivera Policy Institute and professor of political studies at Pitzer College and Claremont Graduate University.