In the course of researching and writing this book we relied on an expansive network of friends, family, activists, journalists, and scholars. Without this collective infrastructure, Blood of Extraction would have been impossible.
In Canada, we presented early iterations of our research at Ideas Left Out, as well as consecutive Historical Materialism conferences in Toronto. Thanks to Paul Kellogg and Abbie Bakan for their organizational efforts in arranging our presentation in the former venue, and to the Toronto organizing team of Historical Materialism for their support in the latter forum. David McNally, Greg Albo, and Henry Veltmeyer shared their expertise and offered us crucial support at various stages of the research process. Geoff McCormack shared data on domestic Canadian profit rates. Dawn Paley read our manuscript closely, and made available to us her first-hand knowledge of Mexico, Central America, and Colombia. Jennifer Moore of Mining Watch provided us with important information on mining throughout Latin America generally, as well as specific contacts and ideas for our research on Ecuador. Kevin Thomas from the Maquila Solidarity Network in Toronto offered his knowledge of Canadian operations in the Honduran garment sector. Todd benefited greatly from Spanish lessons and regular conversations with our friend and comrade Carlos Torchia, a lifelong participant in the struggle for a better world. Carlos generously shared his knowledge of, and passion for, Latin American history and politics. Melisa Breton and Caren Weisbart offered their exceptional translation and transcription skills for many of our field interviews in the Guatemalan case. Jeffery also relied on his parents Roger and Elaine Webber, to whom he dedicates this book, as well as his sisters Elizabeth, Ruth, and Theresa. Olga Shustyk, Gerry Dykstra, and Rebecca Dykstra were consistently supportive.
In the United States, Greg Grandin and Noam Chomsky demonstrated yet again their selfless solidarity with and support for dissident research projects such as ours, as did Sinclair Thomson, Charlie Post, and Forrest Hylton. Dana Frank showed enthusiasm for our research and provided us with contact information and ideas for our research trips to Honduras. Gerardo Renique, an expert on Peru, provided us with leads and resources on the mining sector in that country. Bhaskar Sunkara offered space in the pages of Jacobin for some of our early, exploratory writings on Honduras and the rest of Central America, and enthusiastically agreed to read our manuscript.
In Honduras, Karen Spring went above and beyond reasonable expectations in her assistance to our research, and fed us a steady stream of insights on the intricacies of Honduran politics. Her intimate knowledge of the country’s social movements opened up new worlds that would otherwise have remained outside our reach.
In Guatemala, Grahame Russell of Rights Action, a leading solidarity organization working with communities resisting Canadian extractive projects in Central America, shared with us his intimate knowledge of the country, including its scars from centuries of imperialism, and introduced us to many of the heroic activists in the country who continue to fight, often at great personal cost, for social justice.
In Ecuador, Michelle Báez, Alejandra Santillana Ortíz, and William Sacher were instrumental in supporting our investigations and helping us understand the complexities of the country’s politics and economics. Michelle and Alejandra helped us to understand the shifting balance of forces between complex socio-political configurations and ideological currents, and there are few people who understand mining in Ecuador better than William.
In Venezuela, many of the interviews conducted for this book were carried out together with Susan Spronk. Many thanks to Susan for her friendship and political acumen during those investigations. Atenea Jiménez Lemon and William Gudiño helped us make connections and better understand the Venezuelan conjuncture.
In London (U.K.) we presented parts of our preliminary research in the Historical Materialism and World Development working group. Particularly beneficial were the comments we received from Ben Selwyn, Liam Campling, Satoshi Miyamura, and Jonathan Pattenden.
This book was written with support from the Social Sciences and Human Research Council.
Our heartfelt appreciation to all of the courageous activists throughout the Americas, facing off against Canadian imperialism, who agreed to speak with us over the last five years. We hope they receive this book as a modest contribution to the struggle.
As ever, our deepest thanks go to Jackie Esmonde and Tieneke Dykstra.