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Rethinking Foreign Aid: Mutual Aid Initiatives in the 1980s and Early 1990s

Zoe L. Blake
During the 1980s and early 1990s, the armed conflict in El Salvador was deeply marked by US military and economic intervention. However, this emphasis on state foreign policy has tended to overshadow the many forms of solidarity and mutual aid promoted by ordinary US citizens. This work reframes the concept of foreign aid by analyzing grassroots initiatives—religious, community, and union-based—that actively challenged official U.S. policy. Through the study of the Sanctuary Movement, churches and organizations such as the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES) and Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N), as well as the participation of unions such as the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), the essay demonstrates that transnational solidarity constituted a significant political and moral force. These actions not only provided material and symbolic support to Salvadorans, but also challenged the dominant discourses of the Cold War, highlighting the role of citizens as active agents in the construction of cross-border justice and peace.
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