Peals of laughter burst from Room 6275 in Bunche Hall on
Thursday afternoon.
“What gives a kid the political courage to say
that?” bellowed guest speaker Tariq Ali after narrating a
story about a rigged election in which a boy refused to play his
bugle for the newly elected president and told the general in
charge, “You seem keen on playing the bugle; you can play it
yourself.”
Ali, an author, filmmaker and historian who has been highly
critical of the United States and its policies, kept over 80 UCLA
students, faculty and guests laughing and engaged in a lecture
called “The Latin American Challenge: Chavez, Morales,
Castro.”
Ali spent more than two hours discussing Latin American
policies, including the turbulent events that have occurred
throughout Latin America’s history.
“There are lots of problems (in Latin America) that should
not be underestimated,” said Ali as he described the various
economic situations and their impact on Latin America.
Ali talked extensively on his encounters with Hugo Chavez, the
current president of Venezuela.
“I’ve interviewed Chavez several times,” said
Ali, adding that Chavez is a popular candidate in Venezuela.
“Every time, Chavez has won (his) elections.”
Ali’s goes into greater detail on Latin America in his new
book, “Pirates of the Caribbean: Axis of Hope,” which
is set to come out later this year. The book is about Cuba’s
leader Fidel Castro, Chavez and Evo Morales, the current president
of Bolivia.
Besides discussing elections and Latin America, Ali also freely
answered questions posed by audience members about other countries
and their governments, such as China and South Africa.
Ali said a democracy that supports capitalism is not a true
democracy, because they are incompatible.
“We need a world that is not dominated by the market and
the drive for profit,” Ali said.
Many guests in attendance said they were impressed with his
comprehensive knowledge of foreign policies.
“I haven’t read any of his books before,” said
Kathy Laura, a third-year sociology student. “But the event
was interesting and really informative.”
Other students said they went to take advantage of the lectures
on Latin America.
“There aren’t many Latin American programs at other
universities,” said Molly Ball, a graduate student in
history.