which refers to the political system in which the distribution of power is concentrated among a few people, often belonging to privileged families from the colonial period. Galeano claims that Latin America’s oligarchy is controlled by foreign powers and has contributed to perpetuating the exploitation of the region. Open Veins begins with the time of European settlement of the Americas. Galeano narrates how the men of Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés destroyed the city of Tenochtitlan, capital of the Mexica Empire, and how Spanish Conquistador Francisco Pizarro, after receiving a ransom equivalent to two rooms filled with gold and silver to free Inca emperor Atahualpa, still decided to kill him. Galeano also discusses how the sugar cane brought by the Spaniards destroyed the ecological landscape of considerable areas of Brazil and the Caribbean. As a whole, Part I of the book focuses on Latin America’s natural resources and how their exploitation generated wealth for the Europeans while exacerbating poverty for Latin Americans. In this section Galeano also emphasizes the suffering European settlement meant for indigenous communities, who were dispossessed of their land, enslaved, and killed. In Part II, Galeano explains the origin of Colombia’s lengthy armed conflict, driven by the wealth generated by land exploitation and coffee production, and how the ambitions of the American United Fruit Company ignited the Guatemalan Civil War. He also explains the history of violence in Mexico, beginning with the US’s occupation of half its territory in 1848. Throughout this part, Galeano continues to narrate tragic historical events encouraged by the United States and corporations that have led to war, poverty, and suffering. Galeano also explains how foreign companies had as an objective the weakening of Latin American states in order to get access to their resources. He criticizes capitalism and its institutions, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Lastly, in Part III, written 7 years later, Galeano summarizes the events that had taken place since the publication of the book. He argues that the events discussed in the second part of the book continue to happen and that the US continues to dominate the region. He concludes by stating that Latin America’s situation has continued to worsen. Themes Colonialism Galeano discusses colonialism in terms of the negative consequences it had in Latin America. He argues that colonialism gave entry to violent capitalism, which, in turn, brought discrimination, exploitation of natural resources, and oppression. Imperialism Colonialism