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Masacre of Bananeras
Masacre of Bananeras
6 de diciembre de 1928 cuando un regimiento de las fuerzas armadas de Colombia abrieron fuego
contra un número indeterminado de manifestantes que protestaban por las pésimas condiciones
de trabajo en la United Fruit Company
The Massacre of the Bananeras was an episode that occurred in the Colombian
town of Ciénaga on December 6, 1928 when a regiment of the Colombian armed
forces opened fire on an unknown number of protesters protesting the appalling
working conditions at the United Fruit Company
At that time, the workers' union and the United Fruit Company had a period of
discussion regarding working conditions. They demanded better wages from the
company, construction of decent housing for workers and compensation for
accidents, among others, the leaders rejected the petitions as illegal. This led to
the general strike of workers that began on November 12, 1928. Versions affirm
that the strike began peacefully, and that little by little it was influenced by
communist agitators and ended up turning into a multitude that sought to behead
the leaders of the company. The top officials of the banana plantation moved their
influence in the government, moving a contingent of soldiers to protect the
directors and properties of the US company. The threat against the life of the
directors, according to sources, was going to be materialized on December 6.
These rumors led the army to make a hasty decision and the order was given to
disperse the crowd using all means. General Cortés Vargas, commander of the
magdalena forces and the one who gave the order to shoot, later argued that he
had done so, among other reasons, because he had information that US ships
were near the Colombian coasts ready to disembark troops to defend to US
personnel and the interests of the United Fruit Company, and that if the order had
not been given, the United States would have invaded Colombian lands. This
position was strongly criticized in the Senate, especially by Jorge Eliécer Gaitán
who claimed that those same bullets should have been used to stop the foreign
invader.
Vocabulary:
● Town: pueblo
● sought: buscado
● behead: decapitar
● Unknown: Desconocido
● was going: Estaba yendo
● Appalling: Pésimo
● hasty: apresurado
● Regarding: respecto a
● gave: dio
● better wages: mejores salarios
● shoot: disparar
● decent housing: Alojamiento decente
● bullets: balas
● among: entre
● foreign: exterior
● rejected: rechazado
● strike: Huelga
● ended: terminó