James F. Siekmeier
Professor
Categorized As
U.S. History, 1865-Present; History of U.S. Foreign Relations; Latin America and the World
Teaching Fields
- U.S. History, 1865-Present
- History of U.S. Foreign Relations
- Latin America and the World
Degrees
- Ph.D., Cornell University, 1993
- M.A., Cornell University, 1989
- B.A. with honors, Oberlin College, 1984
Research Interests
Dr. Siekmeier's most recent book is a history of the intersection of nationalism and globalization in Latin America. It examines the historical development of different facets of that nationalism: economic, cultural, and political forms of nationalism, and the connections between those different types of nationalism. Moreover, it situates Latin American nationalism in a global setting, examining how Latin American nationalism has been used to attempt to shield Latin America from some of the downsides of globalization faced by a number of Global South countries. Currently, Dr. Siekmeier is working on a history of the so-called "war on drugs," the U.S. effort to suppress the production and export of illegal narcotics, in Latin America. Focusing on the Andean region, his work aims to place the drug war in Latin America in an international context.
Courses Offered
- HIST 153: Making of Modern America
- HIST 276: History of U.S. Foreign Relations in the 20th century
- HIST 365: Vietnam War
- HIST 370: Latin America and the World
- HIST 375: Hollywood and History
- HIST 463: American Foreign Policy, 1776-1941
- HIST 464: American Foreign Policy, 1941-present
- HIST 765: Readings in the history of US Foreign Relations
- HIST 766: Seminar in the history of US Foreign Relations
Students Advised
- Dillan Ritchie
- Karli Carminiti
- Sean Silverman
- Rachel Fryer Dommel
- Chadwick Straw
Publications
Books
La revolución nacional y los Estados Unidos : conflictos y negociaciones, 1952-1964 / James F. Siekmeier ; traducción e Hans Huber Abendroth. (La Paz, Bolivia: Plural, 2014)
The Bolivian Revolution and the United States, 1945-present (Penn State University Press, 2011)
Aid, Nationalism and Inter-American relations: Guatemala, Bolivia, and the United States, 1944-1961 (Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen, 1999)
Selected Journal and Chapter Publications
"Thinking about Democracy: Inevitable Revolutions," (with Lorena Oropeza) in Susan A. Brewer, Richard H. Immerman, and Douglas Little, Thinking Otherwise: How Walter LaFeber Explained the History of U.S. Foreign Relations. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2024: 104-131.
“Evolution of Nationalism in Latin America in the Context of Globalization,” in Baisotti, Pablo A. , ed. Problems and Alternatives in the Modern Americas. (New York: Routledge, 2022).
Siekmeier, James F., ed. “Chapter 19-- The United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean since 1961,” in McPherson, Alan, gen. ed., The SHAFR Guide: An Annotated Bibliography of U.S. Foreign Relations since 1600, 4th ed. (Boston: Brill, 2022).
“Historiography of U.S-Latin American Relations in the Mid-Twentieth Century” in Dietrich, Christopher R. W., ed., _A Companion to U.S. Foreign Relations: Colonial Era to the Present_ (Hoboken, NJ: Wiley- Blackwell, 2020): 749-770.
Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Vol. E-16, Documents on Chile, 1969–1973, eds. James McElveen and James Siekmeier ( Washington: Government Printing Office, 2015)
Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969-1976, Documents on South America, 1973–1976, Vol. E-11, Part 2, eds. Sara Berndt, Halbert Jones, and James Siekmeier (Washington: Government Printing Office, 2015)
Foreign Relations of the United States , 1969–1977, Volume XXII, Panama, 1973–1976, eds. Bradley L. Coleman, Alexander O. Poster, and James F. Siekmeier (Washington: Government Printing Office, 2015)
“Nationalism and Globalization in Latin America,” Current History 15, February 2015.
"The Iran –Contra Scandal,” in Andrew Johns, ed. A Companion to Ronald Reagan (Wiley-Blackwell Companions to American History), 2015.
Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1977, Volume XXI, Chile, 1969–1973, eds. James McElveen and James Siekmeier (W ashington: Government Printing Office, 2014)
“La Revolución Nacional en Bolivia y los Estados Unidos: conflicto, nacionalismo, y negociatión, 1952-1971,” in Roberto García Ferreira, ed., Nada templada: La Guerra Fria Latinamericana (Montevideo: Universidad de la República, Departamento de Historia Americana, 2010).
Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Vol. E-10, Documents on American Republics, 1969–1972, eds. Douglas Kraft and James Siekmeier (Washington: Government Printing Office, 2009).
“Latin American Economic Nationalism and United States-Latin American Relations, 1945-1961.” The Latin Americanist 52:3 (October 2008): 59-76.
“Persistent Condor and Predatory Eagle: Bolivian Relations with the United States, 1952-1964,” essay published in Statler, Kathryn C., and Johns, Andrew L., eds., The Eisenhower Administration, the Third World, and the Globalization of the Cold War , (Rowman and Littlefield, 2006).
“Politics, Access, and History: The Chile Declassification Project of 1998-2000,” Hemisphere (October 2004).
“Trailblazer Diplomat: Victor Andrade Uzquiano’s Efforts to Influence U.S. Policy, 1944-1962,” Diplomatic History 28 (June 2004).
“A Sacrificial Llama? The Expulsion of the Peace Corps from Bolivia in 1971,” Pacific Historical Review 69 (February 2000).
Grants and Awards
- Erasmus+ Faculty Mobility Grants, 2022, 2024
- Franklin Travel Award, American Philosophical Society, 2020
- West Virginia Humanities Council Grant, 2014, 2022
- Fulbright Senior Scholar Award, 2002
- Fulbright Senior Scholar Award, 1996-1997
- Mellon Dissertation Completion Grant, 1991-1992
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