Extracting Honduras: Resource Exploitation, Displacement, and Forced Migration

The book by James J. Phillips explores the deeper causes of Central American emigration to the United States, arguing that the extraction of natural resources has created community displacement, dependency, poverty, and vulnerability. He contends that the usual policy of development aid and investment will only worsen the conditions that create migration.

Format: Hardback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 15 January 2022
Publisher: Lexington Books

James J. Phillips delves into the intricate factors driving the significant exodus of Central Americans to the United States, with a particular emphasis on Honduras. He goes beyond the commonly cited reasons for migration and offers a comprehensive analysis of how the frenzied extraction of natural resources has led to widespread community displacement, dependency, poverty, and vulnerability. This has fostered corruption, violence, gang recruitment, drug trafficking, militarization of Honduran society, and systematic repression of popular protest and resistance.

Phillips highlights the connection between this situation and Honduras's colonial (or imperial) extractive relationship with the United States, arguing that the traditional approach of development aid and investment aimed at reducing migration will only exacerbate the conditions that drive migration. Through this book, Phillips paints a vivid picture of how the Central American immigration "crisis" impacts both the United States and Honduras, while dispelling the misconceptions propagated by populist politics.

The book sheds light on the complex dynamics that shape life in these two countries and emphasizes the need for a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the immigration issue. It challenges readers to consider the broader social, economic, and political factors that contribute to migration and emphasizes the importance of addressing these root causes to promote sustainable development and social justice in Central America and beyond.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781793630339