| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 93.1

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| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 93.1 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

Bedrohliche Nähe: Die USA und die nationalsozialistische Herausforderung in Lateinamerika, 1937–1945 (Threatening proximity: The USA and the national socialist challenge in Latin America, 1937–1945). By Uwe Lübken. (Stuttgart: Steiner, 2004. 438 pp. £50.00, ISBN 3-515-08509-2.) In German.
Uwe Lübken's book Bedrohliche Nähe is based on a dissertation accepted by the University of Cologne in 2001. It forms part of the series Transatlantic Historical Studies published by the German Historical Institute in Washington, D.C.	1
Lübken's central theme is the Roosevelt administration's manipulation of an alleged Nazi threat in Latin America. Franklin D. Roosevelt, the author believes, used this threat in order to win support for his interventionist policies. To what extent FDR himself believed in such an Axis menace is unclear. What is certain is the effect: Even "isolationists" often responded favorably to his appeals for the defense of the Monroe Doctrine against outside aggressors. But how could Adolf Hitler, one may wonder, whose armies were unable to cross the English Channel, invade the Americas? In addition, he had rarely shown much interest in Latin America, nor did he have plans to conquer it. On the other hand, Hitler's actions provoked another, equally legitimate question: Could anyone be safe if he seized nation after nation and created a world empire in Europe, Africa, and perhaps the Middle East? Hitler was also using German minorities in his campaigns to subvert and conquer Central Europe.	. . .

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