Congress’ Response to Further US Aid in Latin America

On the Senate and House floors, voices critical of the military government increased and gained traction. Representative Otto Passman, speaking out against the military regime, took to the House floor in 1969 to criticize the new authoritarian measures under AI-5 and called on his fellow representatives to cease aid to the country. Read “Giveaways Do Not Solve International Problems,” Congressional Record — House — March 13, 1969, 6437.

Representative Donald Fraser

In fall 1973, one week after the coup in Chile, Representative Donald Fraser introduced legislation to establish a bureau of humanitarian affairs within the State Department. The bill stipulated the termination of “all military assistance and sales to any government committing serious violations of human rights” and the suspension of “any economic assistance directly supportive of the government committing such violation.” Rep. Fraser conducted 15 days of hearings with 45 witnesses on the international protection of human rights throughout the globe, including Brazil. Rep. Fraser’s hearings established congressional concerns for human rights and laid the foundation for more human rights legislation.

Frank Church Hearings

Frank Church hearings

On June 25, 1970, the same day that the U.S. Catholic Conference and the National Council of Churches (NCC) petitioned the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to investigate abuses in Brazil, the NCC also sent a letter to Senator Frank Church asking him to hold congressional hearings on Brazil. In September 1970, the hearings began with the agenda of finding out what, if any, role the United States had in training the Brazilian police in techniques that were in turn used to repress and torture Brazilian dissidents. Brazilian government representatives in Washington and the American business community with interests in Brazil feared the impact of the hearings on Brazil’s public image. While the hearings did not find a connection between U.S. military or police training programs and repression of domestic opposition, it raised questions about the relationship between the U.S. and Brazilian governments.

• Read Senator Frank Church’s “Toward a New Latin American Policy.”
• Read Brady Tyson’s memo to Pat Holt.
• Read Brady Tyson’s article “Brazil Twists Thumbscrews; Brazil Junta Repression Stifles the Opposition” in the Washington Post.
• Read Senator Edward Kennedy’s 1971 letter to the secretary of state about repression in Brazil.
• Read about Harry and Loretta Sthrasky, who founded the Committee Against Repression in Brazil (CARIB).