| Photo by Agatha Depine on Unsplash
Part IV of “Fourteen More Letters to Pope Leo XIV” Series
This columnist makes a “fearless forecast”. Because the United States invaded Venezuela in January 2026, the 2028 Summer Olympics were scheduled for Los Angeles (L.A.). The County of California may be boycotted by many people belonging to the “Hispanidad” group of nations. The boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics may serve as an inspiration to freedom-loving people of the world who speak Spanish and so-called “Romance languages”.
Many Hispanic, Latino, and Iberian countries may boycott the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Or force its transfer to another location. That is, if the U.S. continues to “govern” Venezuela and, more importantly, control the Venezuelan crude-oil deposits and petroleum industry.
Remember the U.S.-led boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics? It was a Cold War protest initiated by then-President Jimmy Carter after the Soviet Union’s December 1979 invasion of Afghanistan. Its supposed goal was to pressure the Soviets to withdraw from Afghanistan by denying them the legitimacy of hosting the Summer Olympic Games. More than 60 nations joined the boycott, impacting athletes’ dreams. However, it led to a less effective boycott by the Soviet bloc of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
Thus, history may repeat itself, to use an oft-quoted adage. It is expected that the global Olympic organization will decide before summer this year what to do with the 2028 L.A. Olympics. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is the overarching body that organizes the Olympic Games. However, it delegates the day-to-day planning and execution to the local Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (OCOG), which is formed by the host city and its National Olympic Committee (NOC). The IOC sets the rules, decides on sports, and oversees the entire process. At the same time, the OCOG, working closely with the IOC, manages logistics, venues, and operations for a specific edition of the Games.
And guess what? All of the Hispanidad and Iberian countries are predominantly Catholic. While Pope Leo XIV is the first pontiff from the United States, he is also an honorary citizen of Peru. The pontiff, as well as many of the Vatican’s diplomats and dignitaries, speaks Spanish and Latin, in addition to Italian. What if the first American pope leads a worldwide movement of Hispanic, Iberian, and Italian nations in boycotting the upcoming Olympics? To force the U.S. exit from Venezuela?
On July 20, 2022, this column discussed “Geopolitics Is In Play in U.S. Politics, Especially in Florida”. It also discussed the growing percentage of Americans of Hispanic, or Latino, descent and immigrants, whether legal or migrants or asylum seekers.
“Perhaps the Vatican could use the boycott threat for the 2028 L.A. Olympics to persuade U.S. policy and decision-makers to get out of Venezuela. Pronto.”
The article also discusses the difference between “Hispanic American” and “Latin American”.
Hispanics make up about 19.5% (and counting) of the U.S. population, totaling over 65 million people — as of mid-2023. They are the nation’s largest racial or ethnic minority group, with significant populations in states such as California, Texas, Florida, and New York, and diverse origins from Mexico, Puerto Rico, and other Latin American countries. Added to the total (which the U.S. Census does not mention) are Spanish-speaking Americans of Filipino, Macanese, and other Asian descent, as well as those from Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and former Spanish colonies in Africa. But the U.S. Census data do not include the Iberian-speaking Americans in the Hispanic groups. Their combined total may exceed a third of the U.S. population. Their presence has forced U.S. businesses and healthcare facilities to become bilingual.
While “Iberian languages” include Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Galician, the vast majority of speakers in the U.S. use Spanish. Roughly 45 million people speak Spanish at home, and estimates put the total at 59 million or more, making it the second most-spoken language after English. Portuguese speakers (including Brazilians) number around 870,000, forming the second most common non-English language in many areas, according to recent U.S. Census and other data.
Hours after the White House announced the U.S. invasion of Venezuela, this writer posted on Facebook his “Unsolicited Advice” op-ed piece. It was entitled “Pope Leo XIV Must Diffuse and De-escalate the Venezuelan Crisis.”
Perhaps the Vatican could use the boycott threat for the 2028 L.A. Olympics to persuade U.S. policymakers and decision-makers to withdraw from Venezuela. Pronto.
Come to think of it, the boycott of the 2028 Olympics — if it happens — may be dubbed the “Romance-language Driven Initiative”. Why? Because the boycott proponents may be using modern “Romance lingo” — from Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian. Yes, tongues that evolved from Vulgar Latin, the common spoken language of the Roman Empire. It is not from a “romantic” sense of love, but from the Latin word Romanicus, meaning “in the Roman way”. And what better way to express “Make Love, Not War” or “Haz el Amor y no la Guerra“?
Quo vadis, United States of America?
