Chilean President Michelle Bachelet and Argentinian president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
The Pink Tide is a term given to the new reform in government within the Latin American countries that have leftist political leaders. It has been a relative boom within the media that has a particular aim towards the Latin American countries with a newly flourishing Leftist political standpoint. The idea of "pink tide" stems from the term "red tide" (a term often used in biology) but is related to the 'red' that has long been connected with communism. It is replaced by the lighter tone of "pink" to indicate the sociological and neoliberal composition hue that is growing within these countries. Author Katherine Isbester supports the Pink Tide stance in Latin America. "The success of the Pink Tide governments in Latin America highlights a conundrum for politics in the region: neoliberal democratization raised the expectations of the populace but did not create the mechanisms to fulfill those expectations. The weak state lacks autonomy from the elite class but the elite no longer control the vote. Voters are now using their most powerful tool - their sheer numbers - and electing into power those who promise to make the system work for them. The agendas of Pink Tide governments intend to improve social justice. Yet most Pink Tide countries have compromised with the neoliberal structuring of their political economy and the insertion of their nations into globalization"(Isbester, 65). With the pink tide, and the rise of socialism in Latin America, the United States have voiced their concerns with these countries, and limited their worldwide exchange.
Authors Rory Carroll and Lola Almudevar speak out on their ideals concerning the Pink Tide to counter act any negative lights shed on Latin America, exemplifying the effect taken by leaders current and past. "Rehabilitation has been borne on the region's "pink tide" of left-wing governments, especially in Bolivia and Venezuela, where efforts are under way to promote socialism, deepen ties with Havana and roll back Washington's influence. The Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez, echoes Che's desire to wean people off capitalism by moulding a "new socialist man". The Argentine-born rebel's writings have been widely distributed in Venezuela and a government-run work and training scheme was recently named after him. Chavez has devised an ambitious scheme that ships Venezuelan oil to Cuba in exchange for 20,000 medical personnel who offer free treatment to Venezuela's poor" (Carroll & Almudevar, flcikr.com)