By Carabela García

Every once in a while a white guy (it’s always a white guy) writes a condescending and paternalistic piece on the D.R. Here is one where the writer gazes at the Dominican Republic and its people through the lens of colonialism and what we here at the office call US-ism. The article in question is called The Dominican Republic: Security challenges, government responses and recommendations for the U.S. See our response:                                                        

FIRST, you sat down and thought what better way to justify the War on Drugs than by throwing out non-white people’s nationalities (Dominicans! Venezuelans! Colombians!). Bring in Brian De Palma, we’re back to the 80s where Latinos were portrayed as drug dealers. But you don’t say a word about drug consumption in the United States. Read more about it here. And here too. Also, it’s funny how to justify the War on Drugs once has to parrot what pro-War on Drugs politicians—such as Danilo Medina— have to say.

SECOND, you applied an analogy rule because that’s how you see the world. So goggled “porous borders” and “Tijuana” and “military occupation” and found out about Haiti—this is called research these days. Then you flipped a coin and said: DR versus Haiti, that’s it! Hey, isn’t that a line from the Trump playbook?

THIRD, you did a little browsin’ of the bible and realized (did some realizin’) that the Dominican Republic’s location is both (quote): “blessed and cursed”.  (End quote). Halleluyah!

FOURTH, Cuba came to mind. Trouble. Trouble. Trouble. Ay caramba! Here’s what you wrote:

Proud Dominicans claim with bravado that their beaches are much better than those of their communist neighbor, yet if U.S.-Cuban relations improve following Raúl Castro’s resignation in 2018, increased Cuban access to U.S. commercial and tourism markets will present competition for the Dominican Republic.

So, you decided that pitting Cuba against the DR (and Haiti against the DR) was fair game. No, No, No, No. Is that C.Wright Mills by the door? No, Dominicans don’t want to compete with Cuban beaches. That’s the tourist sector of the country, the wealthy few. It has nothing to do with the ordinary person.

FIFTH, borrowing from Trump’s playbook, you argued that:

For many Dominicans, Haiti continues to be, directly or indirectly, the nations’ principal security challenge.

What Dominicans? Those in power? is this another way to push for the militarization of borders. Money, money, money. Show me! Show me the money!!!

AND, I can go on and on and on. Just kidding.

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