Carlos Strasser Interviews Nahuel Moreno (1959)
We present an interview with Nahuel Moreno conducted by Carlos Strasser, originally published in the book Las izquierdas en el proceso político argentino (The Left in the Argentine Political Process), published by Editorial Palestra in 1959, which is part of the Agramante collection directed by writer and journalist Gregorio Selser.
The book was published (and the interview conducted) shortly after the overthrow of Juan Domingo Perón (1955) and during the first year of Arturo Frondizi’s “developmentalist” government. These were times of prominence for the workers’ movement led by Perón, of Frondizi’s government supported by sectors of the bourgeoisie as well as political parties that claimed to be leftist, of debates about US interventionism (“Braden or Perón”), the role of the USSR, the Chinese revolution and the countries of Eastern Europe, and the seizure of power in Cuba by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara in January 1959. Moreno already had a career spanning over 15 years and was a leader of Palabra Obrera (Workers’ Word).
In this interview, Moreno responds to debates such as: What does it mean to be left-wing? Was the Peronist government’s policy left-wing or fascist? What role do British and Yankee imperialism play? Did Frondizi continue Perón’s plan to negotiate with US oil companies?
Reading this interview provides insight into the national and international situation at that time, which sparked debates that in many cases continue today. To explore these topics further, we suggest reading The Gorilla Coup of 1955, available at nahuelmoreno.org.