Latin America

World News

El Salvador's Slain Archbishop Romero Moves A Step Closer To Sainthood

8:08am May 25, 2015

by Carrie Kahn

Celebrations in El Salvador honored the life of slain Archbishop Oscar Romero, who was beatified on Saturday. Catholics paid tribute to the man who fought for the poor during the country's civil war.

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Examining Catholicism's Controversial Liberation Theology

8:08am May 25, 2015

The legacy of slain Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero, who was beatified on Saturday, is tied to Liberation Theology. Renee Montagne talks to John Allen of the Boston Globe about the movement.

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Maria del Pilar Perdomo holds up a framed portrait of the slain Archbishop of San Salvador, Oscar Arnulfo Romero, during a procession on March 24 to mark the 35th anniversary of his assassination in San Salvador, El Salvador. Romero was killed in 1980 whi

What Archbishop Romero's Beatification Means For El Salvador Today

11:49am May 23, 2015

by Carrie Kahn

Saturday's ceremony ends a long fight for recognition of the staunch defender of the poor, who was assassinated in 1980. But some say the violence-wracked country is no better now than it was then.

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How Heroin Made Its Way From Rural Mexico To Small-Town America

5:58am May 22, 2015

by NPR Staff

With pizza delivery as a model, Mexican cartels revolutionized the heroin trade, making it easily available in smaller U.S. communities. Journalist Sam Quinones has the story in his new book.

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U.S.-Cuba Talks To Resume On Re-Establishing Diplomatic Relations

2:57pm May 21, 2015

by Michele Kelemen

The U.S.-Cuban thaw announced last December raised expectations of a new diplomatic relationship. But talks, which resume Thursday, are moving slowly on the first step: re-opening embassies.

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World News

U.S.: Venezuelan Officials Involved In Drug Trafficking, Money Laundering

7:44am May 21, 2015

Steve Inskeep talks to Juan Forero of The Wall Street Journal about his report that officials are being investigated for allegedly turning the country into a hub for cocaine and money laundering.

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Jenny Tenorio Gallegos, 35, in Lima, Peru, is being treated for drug-resistant TB. The treatment lasts two years and may rob her of her hearing.

She's Got One Of The Toughest Diseases To Cure. And She's Hopeful

2:44pm May 20, 2015

by Jason Beaubien

Drug-resistant tuberculosis is a growing problem. It's spread through the air. It can kill you. And it's incredibly difficult to treat. But a program in Peru shows that the disease can be cured.

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A man and his drone: Carlos Casteneda of the Amazon Basin Conservation Association prepares to launch one of his plastic foam planes.

Eyes In The Sky: Foam Drones Keep Watch On Rain Forest Trees

7:46pm May 19, 2015

by Jason Beaubien

The autopilot toy planes, equipped with cameras, help conservationists detect illegal logging and mining earlier in the remote parts of the Amazon basin.

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Assault On Salt: Uruguay Bans Shakers In Restaurants And Schools

1:33pm May 19, 2015

by Lourdes Garcia-Navarro

The tiny nation has some of Latin America's highest rates of obesity, hypertension and heart disease. The capital Montevideo has tried to intervene by making salt on the table illegal.

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Researchers meet participants: (from left) investigator Jose Luis Roca; Dr. Ernesto Ortiz; study participants Rainer Leon and his mother, Rina Leon Chanbilla; and nurse Jennifer Rampas.

They're Going Door To Door In The Amazon To See Why People Get Sick

10:14am May 19, 2015

by Jason Beaubien

In one of the most remote parts of the Peruvian Amazon, researchers are in the midst of an extensive health census. The study could be key to figuring out the impact of mercury used in illegal mining.

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