Craig Gertsch

Former Paramilitary Militants Convicted in Colombia

A little bit on my background–I’m a bilingual Latin American Policy Specialist, a Graduate Research Affiliate at the Rapoport Center for Human Rights & Justice, & a Master’s Candidate at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Affairs (also researcher for graduate policy project with the Strauss Center) preparing to work in the international relations/public policy arena in Latin American Policy, and preferably with the United Nations or US government. I am pursuing a degree in Global Policy Studies, specializing in US-Latin American policy and intelligence-global security studies. Additionally, I was born and raised in San Diego, then I graduated with High Honors/Phi Beta Kappa from Berkeley (where I also presented and published my honors thesis on public health inequalities). I have an excellent educational, employment (in both public and private sectors), and volunteer background that has helped me develop superb analytic, research, and writing skills that will enable me to be a positive asset to any team I join. My wife is a dental hygienist, and we both seek to serve our local communities. I am a motivated, bilingual (proficient in speaking Spanish from traveling throughout Latin America and community service) professional looking to gain further career experience in the international relations and policy arena, including government and private organizations.

US-Mexico trade relations

Mexico-US Relations: The government will shut down if Congress doesn't pass a catch-all spending bill by the 100th day of the Trump era.

US-Mexico Relations in the Trump Era--In this article, I discuss how Trump’s unanticipated victory in the 2016 US presidential elections has dramatically altered the decision-making calculus of US-Mexico relations.

Mexico-US Relations in Trump Era: By antagonizing the U.S.’s neighbor to the south, Donald Trump has made the classic bully’s error: He has underestimated his victim.

Relations that were in crisis earlier this year when Presidents Donald Trump and Enrique Peña Nieto quarreled over who pays for a border wall have improved since Mr. Trump has stopped attacking Mexico.

Mexico-US Border: Berkeley architecture professor Ronald Rael reimagines the U.S.-Mexico border wall as a place to convene in his new book, Borderwall as Architecture: A Manifesto for the U.S.-Mexico Boundary

Congressional Committee addresses LatAm corruption

Need for Mexican Police Reform

My own article on US-Mexico relations in the Trump Era.

A mass grave containing more than 250 human skulls was uncovered in central Mexico, most likely the victims of drug cartels over the years, authorities said.

Our class went to Mexico City to do class research, and it was so great! I definitely enjoyed all of our interviews and meetings, and it was great to visit with Mexican political leaders, Senators, NGOs, federal police, and other agencies. It was a great trip that I believe left me much better informed about the cartel violence situation in Mexico than before our research trip.

Upheaval in the criminal underworld and a changing political landscape suggest Mexico's recent bloodshed will not soon fade.

Latin America must be at that center: With some notable exceptions, the last ten years have seen Latin America bloom into an overall stable and prosperous region, one that is open and ready for continued engagement. US businesses have begun to seize the benefits of this growth and stability with Latin America.

Mexico has canceled existing sugar export permits to the United States in a dispute over the pace of shipments, according to a letter seen by Reuters, in a flare-up industry sources said could temporarily disrupt supplies.