Odd Lots

Greg Grandin on how the Monroe Doctrine Became the Donroe Doctrine

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Jan 9, 2026
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INSIGHT

Monroe Doctrine Was Originally Vague

  • The Monroe Doctrine began as a cautious, short set of paragraphs in Monroe's 1823 address, not a formal law or policy.
  • Latin Americans read it as anti-colonial support, but it was vague and adaptable to U.S. interests.
INSIGHT

Doctrine Expanded Into Hegemonic Tool

  • Presidents expanded Monroe into a tool of U.S. hemispheric control when convenient, turning warning into enforcement.
  • Theodore Roosevelt's 1904 corollary formalized U.S. 'international police' actions in Latin America.
INSIGHT

Latin America Shaped U.S. Overseas Power

  • Latin America was where the U.S. first learned to project power beyond its borders and to operate as an overseas power.
  • That regional experience shaped later global interventions and hemispheric doctrines.
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