Basic Resources for Electronic Research in Foreign Policy Issues

 

I. Government Sources (Note: Many sources can be found by going through Oberlin's own Database locators

State Department

Electronic Reading Room: FOIA Documents released by the State Department of a variety of issues (e.g. Chile, El Salvador Church Women, El Salvdor, Guatemala).

Western Hemisphere affairs:

For example, look there for an examination of official US policy on Colombia and drugs: US Support for Plan Colombia; or for Press Statements, Remarks, Country Information, etc. on various countries, including US Relations with Mexico

Foreign Relations of the United States: (a basic source of official documentation on foreign relations). At the present, some of the volumes are Online

Library of Congress:

Thomas: Excellent for locating any Congressional legislation, committee reports, etc. It has a search capacity, via which one can find congressional information on a variety of sources. Try entering "Colombia," for examle.

American Memory: An extremely rich collection of photographs, sounds, and other archival materials concerning the United States. For example, one can find the newly addeed (4/2000) collection on Puerto Rico at the Dawn of the Modern Age:

Congressional Internet Services (CIS): Major gateway into congressional information sources. These include the

Congressional Budget Office where one can find Studies and Reports, such those concerning Trade and International Affairs, where one can look under International Programs. There, one can find the government's report on "The Role of Foreign Aid in Development"

Central Intelligence Agency. Among the CIA's more useful sources are the:

World Factbook, with good statistical information on most countries in the world.

Electronic Document Release Center. Although the CIA has not released nearly as many FOIA documents as the State Department, there are still some useful sources. See, for example, the collection on Human Rights in Latin America, or use the search capability to look for El Salvador, or any other topic.

National Archives and Records Administration. Information on Executive and Legislative branch.

 

Presidential Branch Records

POTUS (Presidents of the United States)

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (since 1993 only)

Public Papers of the Presidents (since 1996 only)

 

II. Non-Governmental Sources

National Security Archive
Electronic Briefing Books

The CIA in Latin America: Declassified Documents on a "Distinguished" Career

Guatemala: Declassified Documents on Colonel Byron Disrael Lima Estrada, Alleged Mastermind behind the Murder of Bishop Juan Gerardi

Kennedy and Castro: The Secret Quest for Accommodation

U.S. Policy in Guatemala, 1963-1993

The Contras, Cocaine, and Covert Operations

CIA and Assassinations: The Guatemala 1954 Documents

The Death of Che Guevara: Declassified

Chile and the United States: Declassified Docs. Related to the Military Coup of Sept. 11, 1973

Tlatelolco Massacre: Declassified U.S. Documents on Mexico and the Events of 1968

Béisbol Diplomacy with Cuba

Guatemalan "Death Squad Dossier"

The Cuban Missle Crisis

LEXUS-NEXUS

Oberlin College Search Help

Hispanic American Periodicals Index

World Cat

Article First

Other Helpful Foreign Policy Sites:

University of Michigan: United States Foreign Policy (Documents Center)

The Avalon Project at the Yale Law School: American Diplomacy 1778 to the Present: Bilateral Treaties and Agreements

Vincent Ferraro Home Page (Professor of International Relations at Mt. Holyoke) containing hundreds of documents on official US foreign policy - scroll through the vast collection before making selections)

Steve Volk Page on Latin American Information Sources