Latin American Research Review, Vol. 43, No. 2. © 2008 by the Latin American Studies Association. SI NICARAGUA VENCIÓ, EL SALVADOR VENCERÁ Central American Agency in the Creation of the U.S.–Central American Peace and Solidarity Movement* Héctor Perla Jr. Ohio University Abstract: Throughout the 1980s one of the Reagan administration’s most contested foreign policy initiatives was that toward Central America, where it attempted to defeat the Salvadoran guerrillas and overthrow the Sandinista government of Ni- caragua. Reagan’s policy was challenged by civil society organizations, whose ef- forts to undermine support for Reagan’s policy came to be known as the Central American Peace and Solidarity Movement (CAPSM). What were the origins of this movement? I argue that previous explorations of the CAPSM’s emergence are inadequate because they neglect the role played by Central Americans as purposive actors in the movement’s rise and development. This article documents the ways in which Nicaraguans and Salvadorans, both in Central America and in the United States, played crucial roles in this transnational movement’s creation and growth. Throughout the 1980s, one of Ronald Reagan’s most contested and controversial foreign policy initiatives was that toward Central America, where he attempted to defeat the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (Frente Farabundo Martí para la Liberación Nacional, FMLN) guer- rillas of El Salvador and coerce the Sandinista National Liberation Front (Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) government of Nicara- gua out of power. Even though the Reagan administration spent millions of dollars and signifcant amounts of resources to promote the president’s Central America policy, it was never very popular with Congress and even less so with the U.S. public. 1 In fact, during Reagan’s two terms in offce, * I would like to thank the anonymous reviewers and editorial team at LARR for their helpful suggestions. I am also deeply indebted to the following colleagues for their invalu- able insights: Mark Sawyer, Lisa Garcia Bedolla, Marco Mojica, Arely Zimmerman, James Vreeland, Bill Robinson, John Guidry, Marisol Gutierrez, Gary Prevost, Tom Walker, and Celeste Montoya. I am also grateful to Felix Kury, Jose Artiga, Don White, Angela Sam- brano, and Roberto Vargas for sharing their experiences with me. I owe my deepest debt to my wife, Marlaina Perla, for her patience, understanding, and support, without which this article could not have been written. It is dedicated to my children Naeli, Amaranta, and Hector Amaru, and my parents Ana del Carmen and Héctor Perla Girón. 1. Throughout the decade public disapproval almost always exceeded approval of Rea- gan’s Central American policy. Public support for U.S. Central American policy averaged