
The 1928 Banana Massacre: When “White Gold” Met State Violence
In December 1928, Colombia’s banana-rich region around Ciénaga became the site of one of the most brutal labor crackdowns in Latin American history. Plantation workers for the U.S.-owned United Fruit Company (now Chiquita) had organized a strike demanding fair wages, written contracts, and hygienic living conditions, such as six-day workweeks and clean dormitories. What began…