Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and a group of other progressive Democrat lawmakers will travel to South America this month to visit the region's three largest leftist-ruled democracies: Brazil, Chile, and Colombia.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the 11-member group will depart Aug. 14 for the weeklong trip. The group reportedly will meet with officials and civil society groups in the countries' capitals.
Organizers told the Times that the trip will be sponsored by a Washington-based progressive advocacy group and won't use taxpayer funds.
"It's long past time for a realignment of the United States' relationship to Latin America," Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement to the Times. "The U.S. needs to publicly acknowledge the harms we've committed through interventionist and extractive policies, and chart a new course based on trust and mutual respect."
Many activists and progressive political organizations said President Joe Biden's election would help reset relations with Latin America by ending some of former President Donald Trump's policies that they felt were hostile to the region. Biden, a Democrat, prides himself on his knowledge of Latin America.
However, 2½ years into his presidency, Biden has kept some of former President Donald Trump's controversial immigration measures in place and maintained punitive measures against Cuba. Critics also say Biden has looked the other way on human rights abuses in Latin American countries in favor of U.S. economic and trade interests.
Biden's progressive critics say he failed last year when he declined to invite Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua to the Summit of the Americas, which was hosted by the U.S. for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Meanwhile, a leftist wave was sweeping over three countries in South America.
In Brazil, former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated a far-right populist and stalwart Trump ally to return to power on Jan. 1.
Decades of authoritarian military rule in Chile have given way to burgeoning democracy where power has transitioned peacefully between progressive and conservative leaders. Last year, Chilean voters elected Gabriel Boric as the hemisphere's youngest president.
For the first time in its history, Colombia elected a president who is not a member of either of the country's two mainstream pro-U.S. parties when former guerrilla fighter Gustavo Petro was sworn in to office last year.
"We have much to learn from our counterparts in these countries, including how to confront disinformation and violent threats to our democracies, how to protect our environment from capitalist pressures, and how to engage in productive truth-and-reconciliation efforts that provide true justice to citizens that have been harmed by their governments," Ocasio-Cortez said.
Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, will join the group, his office confirmed to the Times.
Organizers at the Center for Economic Policy Research told the Times that other participants include Reps. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., Nydia M. Velázquez, D-N.Y., and Greg Casar, D-Texas.
In addition to discussion on issues related to democracy, the congressional delegation will discuss environmental protection and reconciliation projects.
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