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<v Speaker 1>My dad once told me he wanted his ashes spread

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<v Speaker 1>across the Panama Canal. I played along and asked if

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<v Speaker 1>I should say for a helicopter. My father was a force.

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<v Speaker 1>The family physician. Then doctors found a tumor in fall

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<v Speaker 1>of twenty twenty three, but he lasted about two weeks.

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<v Speaker 1>The earth felt like it trembled, but one thing felt certain, unshakable,

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<v Speaker 1>my father's desire to go home. So we brought his

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<v Speaker 1>ashes to Panama, where I've returned to quite a lot

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<v Speaker 1>lately to settle his affairs.

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<v Speaker 2>I'll be back, Okay, I'll be back.

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<v Speaker 1>Story. This is me saying goodbye to my cats in Boston.

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<v Speaker 1>The last time I left for Panama. I called my

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<v Speaker 1>mom on the way to the airport. The horizon tinted

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<v Speaker 1>pink as she asked to pray for me, as she

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<v Speaker 1>always asked God to open doors and closed doors. It's

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<v Speaker 1>something she sure God did. When my parents left Panama

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<v Speaker 1>almost forty years ago, a tiny me in tow my

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<v Speaker 1>mom and dad, a nurse and a doctor left in

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen eighty six, Parama remained caught in the grip of

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<v Speaker 1>Manuel No Diega, a dictator trained by the US military.

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<v Speaker 2>Strange bedfellows.

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<v Speaker 1>Every Sunday, the government would air a propaganda show called

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<v Speaker 1>Everything for the Homeland Toto porla Patria.

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<v Speaker 3>Last Wars.

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<v Speaker 1>After my dad dreamed of practicing medicine in the US,

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<v Speaker 1>my mom imagined a place where No Diega's henchmen weren't

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<v Speaker 1>attacking people in the street. We moved over and over California,

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<v Speaker 1>then New York, where my sister was born, and eventually

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<v Speaker 1>South Florida. My mom supported us working as a nurse.

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<v Speaker 1>My dad, a pediatrician, sold newspapers until a residency accepted him.

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<v Speaker 1>My childhood embodied the diaspora. School years in the States,

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<v Speaker 1>but these long, delicious summers in Panama, where my hair curled,

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<v Speaker 1>my skin tanned, then my smile softened. I'd ride in

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<v Speaker 1>the back of my grandfather's blue jeep, protesting No Diega,

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<v Speaker 1>my little voice screaming abajo lapigna, a reference to the

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<v Speaker 1>dictator's pockmarked face. I grew up longing for those summers,

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<v Speaker 1>counting down the days until I was in Maya Wilalia's

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<v Speaker 1>front yard, eating starfruit from her trees. And at the

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<v Speaker 1>end of each summer, a dread formed in me, and

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<v Speaker 1>I'd cry all the way back to the States. Then,

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<v Speaker 1>on the eve of my fifth birthday, we came back

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<v Speaker 1>to Panama for Christmas break, blissfully unaware we'd soon witness

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<v Speaker 1>our new country bomb our homeland.

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<v Speaker 3>Hello.

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<v Speaker 4>Official figures list some two hundred Panamanian civilians killed. Locals

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<v Speaker 4>here say the true figure is nearer a thousand.

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<v Speaker 1>The US government had grown tired of No Diega. The

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<v Speaker 1>official story was that the authoritarian was caught drug trafficking

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<v Speaker 1>and money laundering into the US, but some reports say

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<v Speaker 1>the Panamanian dictator may have double crossed the CIA, whom

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<v Speaker 1>he'd long given secrets to.

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<v Speaker 5>He was finished a long time ago. He held his power.

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<v Speaker 1>By via The US invaded Panama, toppling him and killing

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<v Speaker 1>hundreds of Panamanian civilians along the way. Many were never found,

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<v Speaker 1>just mass graves and destruction left in the US's wake.

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<v Speaker 5>The Vatican called the United States and occupying power in Panama.

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<v Speaker 1>Today, the US called it Operation just Cause, famous for

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<v Speaker 1>the US military's rock and roll assault. They blared the

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<v Speaker 1>likes of ACDC day and night to drive No Diega

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<v Speaker 1>out of hiding. Seriously, there is a whole playlist online.

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<v Speaker 4>If diplomacy can't move Nadiega. Why not try rock music,

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<v Speaker 4>playing it at full volume outside the Vatican Embassy.

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<v Speaker 1>Before we'd left for Panama, my mom packed a frozen

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<v Speaker 1>turkey in our suitcase, not knowing the US would invade

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<v Speaker 1>two days later. We made that turkey last as long

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<v Speaker 1>as we could at my grandmother's house while explosions went

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<v Speaker 1>off across Panama City. There's a photograph of four year

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<v Speaker 1>old me from this trip. I've got an intense bowl

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<v Speaker 1>cut and I'm smiling wide in a yard full of

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<v Speaker 1>mango trees. Next to me is a US soldier camouflage

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<v Speaker 1>in military garb. His face is painted green, and he's

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<v Speaker 1>kneeling at my side holding a big gun. I remember

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<v Speaker 1>I told him I spoke English, I lived in the

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<v Speaker 1>United States, and hand on my heart, I recited the

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<v Speaker 1>Pledge of Allegiance.

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<v Speaker 2>I was such an innocent kid even then.

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<v Speaker 1>I think a part of me knew the US had

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<v Speaker 1>a certain cavalier power that it could use against my

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<v Speaker 1>country whenever it wanted.

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<v Speaker 2>And I've grown up with that knowledge.

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<v Speaker 1>That if it wanted to, the US could turn on Panama,

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<v Speaker 1>that it could decide to invade US as easily as

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<v Speaker 1>it did when I was four, eating leftover turkey, hearing bombs.

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<v Speaker 1>It's what goes through my mind when I hear Donald

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<v Speaker 1>Trump suddenly call for control of the Panama Canal, a

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<v Speaker 1>marvel of modern engineering that allows ships a shortcut from

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<v Speaker 1>one side of the world to the other, shaving off

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<v Speaker 1>millions of dollars in costs and months of travel.

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<v Speaker 4>The purpose of our deal and the spirit of our

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<v Speaker 4>treaty has been totally violated.

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<v Speaker 1>He's accused Panama of allowing the Chinese government control of

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<v Speaker 1>the canal and of overcharge the US. Panama vehemently denies

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<v Speaker 1>both claims, but Trump has declared the US could simply

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<v Speaker 1>make the canal theirs again.

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<v Speaker 2>And we didn't give it to China.

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<v Speaker 5>We gave it to Panama and we're taking it back.

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<v Speaker 1>So on that recent morning, as I flew to Panama

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<v Speaker 1>one more time, my mom's prayers were for more than

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<v Speaker 1>my travels. I sent them across an ocean to our

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<v Speaker 1>Isthmus for its sovereignty and place in the world.

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<v Speaker 5>Hello, Okay, text me when you're leaving.

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<v Speaker 2>Okay, I will.

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<v Speaker 5>I love you?

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<v Speaker 2>Okay, I love you too. Your pocket.

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<v Speaker 3>From Fudro Media and PRX. It's Latino USA. I'm Ario

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<v Speaker 3>Josa and today the fight over the Panama Canal and

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<v Speaker 3>what it means for a journalist in the US with

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<v Speaker 3>deep Panamanian roots.

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<v Speaker 5>We'll be right back not thereby.

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<v Speaker 3>Yes, we're joined now by Panamanian American journalist Gristella Erra. So, Gristida,

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<v Speaker 3>I just want to ask you, because you know, you

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<v Speaker 3>actually don't hear a lot about Banama in US news.

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<v Speaker 1>So, yes, it's a little place, but there is a

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<v Speaker 1>deep love we Panamanians have for our home. It's always

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<v Speaker 1>been a place of connection of blended cultures, a main

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<v Speaker 1>artery for trade through the Americas. And you know a

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<v Speaker 1>fact in colonial times, enslaved Africans fled ships to freedom

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<v Speaker 1>in Panama and they made settlements where their heritage was preserved.

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<v Speaker 3>But currently Banamah is suddenly all over American media because

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<v Speaker 3>of this decision that Trump has made that he wants

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<v Speaker 3>to reclaim one of the most important global assets in

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<v Speaker 3>the history of trade and commerce, and that would be

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<v Speaker 3>the Panama Canal. So why don't you start, Cristella at

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<v Speaker 3>the beginning here for our listeners who maybe don't know

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<v Speaker 3>the history of the canal.

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<v Speaker 1>So historically ships were required to sail around the entire

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<v Speaker 1>continent of South America to get from the Pacific to

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<v Speaker 1>the Atlantic Ocean. That costs a lot of time and money.

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<v Speaker 1>So the French tried to build a shortcut a canal

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<v Speaker 1>and what is now Panama in the eighteen eighties. They

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<v Speaker 1>weren't able to because of mosquitoes and diseases, and so

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<v Speaker 1>the French approached to the US and offered them that

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<v Speaker 1>contract to build the Panama Canal.

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<v Speaker 5>But there was this.

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<v Speaker 3>Big problem right which is at Panama at that time

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<v Speaker 3>it was actually a part of Colombia.

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<v Speaker 1>Exactly, and Colombia initially denied the Americans the right to build.

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<v Speaker 1>So President Teddy Roosevelt decided, Okay, we'll just support Panamanian

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<v Speaker 1>independence from Colombia with a fleet of warships.

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<v Speaker 5>Okay, So that's pretty incredible.

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<v Speaker 3>And to be clear, there had already been an independence

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<v Speaker 3>movement brewing in Panama, and this military support from the

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<v Speaker 3>United States actually enabled that independence to happen.

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<v Speaker 1>So, yes, Panama its independence, but it comes at a cost.

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<v Speaker 1>The US establishes what is essentially an American colony inside

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<v Speaker 1>Panama in the zone where they built the canal. The

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<v Speaker 1>US spent over three hundred and seventy million dollars at

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<v Speaker 1>the time and finished the canal in nineteen fourteen, and

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<v Speaker 1>the US controls the canal for decades, But in nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>seventy seven, President Jimmy Carter signs a new treaty that

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<v Speaker 1>declared the Panama Canal would be owned and controlled by

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<v Speaker 1>Panama in the year two thousand.

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<v Speaker 4>Fionness and not forced should lie at the heart of

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<v Speaker 4>our dealings with the nations of the world.

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<v Speaker 3>President Carter may he rest in peace. Has received a

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<v Speaker 3>lot of criticism from Republicans for returning the canal to

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<v Speaker 3>the country of Panama.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>I think one of the quotes that really summarizes the

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<v Speaker 1>sentiments from those that disagreed with Carter is from one

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<v Speaker 1>senator at the time, Si Hayakawa, who said, of the canal,

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<v Speaker 1>we should hang on to it. We stole it square

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<v Speaker 1>and Republicans now like Ted Cruz have again expressed a

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<v Speaker 1>similar entitlement.

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<v Speaker 6>The Nation of Panama did not build the Panama Canal.

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<v Speaker 6>America did. The Nation of Panama did not pay for

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<v Speaker 6>the Panama Canal America did. The Nation of Panama did

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<v Speaker 6>not give thousands and thousands of lives in building the canal.

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<v Speaker 6>America did.

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<v Speaker 3>But that notion, right, that idea that the canal was

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<v Speaker 3>built by Americans, that isn't completely accurate, right, Cristilla.

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<v Speaker 1>So not entirely the Americans paid for the construction, but

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<v Speaker 1>the people who literally built the canal with their hands,

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<v Speaker 1>who excavated, were mostly black migrants. Here's Maya doug Akunya,

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<v Speaker 1>a PhD candidate in African and African American studies and

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<v Speaker 1>a scholar focused on Afro Panamanian diaspora at Harvard. Both

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<v Speaker 1>of her grandmothers worked in the American controlled canal zone

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<v Speaker 1>in Panama.

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<v Speaker 7>This language of ownership that's rooted in this idea or

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<v Speaker 7>this myth that Americans built the canal, when no, not

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<v Speaker 7>at all. I mean the workforce, the labor force was

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<v Speaker 7>simply entirely migrant labors and overwhelmingly labors from the Caribbean

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<v Speaker 7>was like black West Indian workers. And those are the

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<v Speaker 7>folks who you know sacrifice. Those are the folks who

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<v Speaker 7>were exploited, and those are the folks who were killed

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<v Speaker 7>in the construction process.

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<v Speaker 3>So for you, Cristella, you too are a Panamanian American.

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<v Speaker 3>What is the threat of the United States taking back

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<v Speaker 3>the canal? What does it bring up for you.

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<v Speaker 1>So honestly, a lot of fear for how things could escalate.

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<v Speaker 1>I think about my parents, who are proud of the

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<v Speaker 1>life we built in the United States and also instilled

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<v Speaker 1>in me a profound love for Panama. And the last

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<v Speaker 1>time I was in Panama, I saw how my family

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<v Speaker 1>there is processing this threat from the US.

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<v Speaker 5>And we're going to hear more about your latest trip

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<v Speaker 5>to Panama.

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<v Speaker 3>Right after the break, we're back with Panamanian American journalist

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<v Speaker 3>grist De la Gera, who's going to take us with

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<v Speaker 3>her as she visits her family in Panama amidst ominous

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<v Speaker 3>threats from President Trump and the United States that it

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<v Speaker 3>wants the Panama Canal back.

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<v Speaker 1>Every time I land in Panama, I remember my Woloo,

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<v Speaker 1>who worked for PanAm waiting as we got off the plane. Today,

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<v Speaker 1>I land alone but lighthearted, and I hear salsa andreatung

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<v Speaker 1>as soon as I got inside my rental car. When

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<v Speaker 1>you long for a place, everything looks romantic, the ocean,

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<v Speaker 1>familiar skyscrapers, the flag. On my way to my aunt's

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<v Speaker 1>house in Panama City, I arrived at my dea greeted

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<v Speaker 1>by my cousin Annadina, a sociologist who convinced me to

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<v Speaker 1>get a matching tattoo of a burning tower on my

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<v Speaker 1>forearm after my dad's funeral.

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<v Speaker 2>It's the Getra family.

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<v Speaker 1>Cress my young cousin, a college student who's like my

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<v Speaker 1>little brother, and a doctor who shares a love.

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<v Speaker 2>Of medicine with my dad. And my dear mummy, my.

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<v Speaker 1>Father's older sister, sharp direct, she doesn't suffer fools.

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<v Speaker 8>I'm welcome, thank you.

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<v Speaker 1>She recently retired as the ambassador for Panama in France

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<v Speaker 1>after fifty years in diplomacy. Wikiki a little, some food

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<v Speaker 1>and drinks and cheesemade ks about. Then we touch on

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<v Speaker 1>what's on everyone's mind, American intervention.

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<v Speaker 2>So do worry for us? Is Trump's declarations?

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<v Speaker 1>My aunt says he's making a mistake with Panama. To

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<v Speaker 1>mess with the canal is to mess with Panamanian territory.

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<v Speaker 1>And there is no separation between the canal and the country.

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<v Speaker 1>It's all Panama. It's true. The canal shaped Panamanian society.

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<v Speaker 1>When Americans built the canal, they brought with them Jim

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<v Speaker 1>Crow segregation with them on top. Residents of the canal zone,

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<v Speaker 1>called Zonians, enjoyed the comforts the color of their skin

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<v Speaker 1>could afford them in a American cast system. For white Zonians,

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<v Speaker 1>the Canal Zone served as an American utopia in the tropics,

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<v Speaker 1>while Black Zonians and other workers were relegated to the fringes,

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<v Speaker 1>and Panamanians we had to live by these rules too

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<v Speaker 1>in the Canal Zone. My aunt remembers taking an accounting

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<v Speaker 1>class in the Canal Zone College.

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<v Speaker 8>All the shares next to the window would be used

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<v Speaker 8>by Sonians as citizens, because that was the best seat.

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<v Speaker 8>Because you were next to the windows, you had the

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<v Speaker 8>trees then you were. If you were a Panamanian, you

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<v Speaker 8>would sit in the middle, and if you were a

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<v Speaker 8>Black Sonian, you would sit against the wall. So I

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<v Speaker 8>was told to move just because I was a Bamanian

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<v Speaker 8>in my own country, they would choose where I would sit.

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<v Speaker 1>My aunt also remembers January ninth, nineteen sixty four, when

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<v Speaker 1>Panamanian students had gotten permission to hang a Panamanian flag

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<v Speaker 1>next to the American flag in the Canal Zone. American

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<v Speaker 1>Zonians didn't like it. A riot broke out. Twenty one

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<v Speaker 1>Panamanians and four Americans were killed. Here's my cousin and

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<v Speaker 1>my Tamammy's daughter Anna.

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<v Speaker 2>Lodina is America Latin America.

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<v Speaker 1>Panama has always been a reactionary country, she tells me, Devido,

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<v Speaker 1>because of living with Uncle Sam's boot at our neck.

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<v Speaker 1>My cousin says, it's only been twenty five years since

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<v Speaker 1>we've been free of US control, when they seeded control

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<v Speaker 1>of the Canal Elonga. Panama is like a lion that

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<v Speaker 1>grew up caged, and even when that cage is gone,

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<v Speaker 1>the lion thinks it still has to stay in the

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<v Speaker 1>same spot, she says, referring to feeling less than your colonizers.

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<v Speaker 1>To her, the strength of Panama is its people and

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<v Speaker 1>their pride, people who Secretary of State Marco Rubio surely

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<v Speaker 1>saw holding Panamanian flags as he visited Panama this month,

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<v Speaker 1>the first overseas trip for the Trump administration and.

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<v Speaker 6>His Secretary of State's first overseas mission.

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<v Speaker 8>Marco Rubio brought an ultimadium ultimatum to Panama's president.

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<v Speaker 1>And after the trip, President Trump had a warning, We're

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<v Speaker 1>going to take.

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<v Speaker 9>It back, or something very powerful is going to happen.

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<v Speaker 1>Panamanian protesters burned American flags and two paper figures with

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<v Speaker 1>Trump and Rubio's face in the street. Not Trump, not

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<v Speaker 1>the gringos or their army or the government have anything

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<v Speaker 1>in Panama. A protester shouted, what's here belongs to the Panamanians,

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<v Speaker 1>the canal. There's sovereignty, their self determination, It's all Panamanian.

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<v Speaker 1>On a recent trip to the Panama Canal, I watched

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<v Speaker 1>with a group of tourists as ships passed through.

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<v Speaker 9>About the.

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<v Speaker 1>Motto of the canal remains bromundi beneficio, which in Latin means.

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<v Speaker 2>For the benefit of the world.

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<v Speaker 1>Americans may have paid and supervised workers who carved through

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<v Speaker 1>our land, establishing an imperial power dynamic that would shape

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<v Speaker 1>us forever, but Panama voted to expand the canal to

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<v Speaker 1>meet the needs of larger ships, making it more efficient

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<v Speaker 1>and profitable through Panamanian ingenuity. Although stamped by this relationship

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<v Speaker 1>with the US, we are not defined by it. There

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<v Speaker 1>are so many things that are still simply and beautifully

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<v Speaker 1>Panamanian without any American influence. Like it's folklore, says my

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<v Speaker 1>cousin Ceastian.

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<v Speaker 9>Of the the personas the Kanzas.

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<v Speaker 1>It's melding of cultures, traditions, people beliefs.

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<v Speaker 10>You got okay, You're not that's.

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<v Speaker 1>I can't imagine myself without Panama. My cousin Adriana tells

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<v Speaker 1>me that cutting our words short our cadence, the way

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<v Speaker 1>the syllables roll from our tongues, that's all Panama.

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<v Speaker 8>It's important.

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<v Speaker 1>Our country is more than a canal. My aunt tells

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<v Speaker 1>me in Pa. Our inherent worth isn't tied to this

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<v Speaker 1>man made waterway. Our gold is this land, lush and green.

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<v Speaker 1>We chart our own fate with the chasm others dredge.

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<v Speaker 1>We don't let threats stop us from celebrating our history,

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<v Speaker 1>from being free. Nama Paramoo. There is nothing more Panamanian than.

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<v Speaker 3>That, Victor Emanuel Guerra Urado Presente. This episode was produced

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<v Speaker 3>by Criste la Guera with production assistance from Tasha Santoval.

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<v Speaker 3>It was edited by Our Co executive producer Maria Garcia.

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<v Speaker 5>It was mixed by Lea Shaw Damaran.

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<v Speaker 3>The Latino USA team also includes Fernanda Chavari, Julia Caruso,

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<v Speaker 3>Jessica Ellis, Victori Estrada, Dominique est Rosa, Prinaldo Leans Junior,

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<v Speaker 3>Stephanie Lebau, Andrea Lopez Grussado, Roxanna Guire Luis, Luna Marta Martinez,

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<v Speaker 3>Nur Saudi, JJ Krubin.

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<v Speaker 5>And Nancy Trujillo, Benillei Ramidez, Marlon.

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<v Speaker 3>Bishop and myself are co executive producers and I'm your host, Mariaojosa.

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<v Speaker 5>Join us again on our next episode.

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<v Speaker 3>In the meantime, I'll see you on all of our

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<v Speaker 3>social media and remember not Te Bay.

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<v Speaker 5>Yes Muca.

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<v Speaker 10>Latino USA is made possible in part by the John D.

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<v Speaker 10>And Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Ford Foundation, working with

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<v Speaker 10>visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide, and

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<v Speaker 10>the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation for more than fifty

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<v Speaker 10>years advancing ideas and supporting institutions to promote a better

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<v Speaker 10>world at Hewlett dot org.