The Mexican Revolution

“Porfiriato”

Porfirio Díaz was one of the generals of

the Liberal army who was President of
Mexico from 1877 until 1911, a period
known as the Porfiriato because the figure
of Porfirio Díaz dominated it.
During this period, the economy grew;
new railways and telephone networks
were built; new banks opened; industry,
mining, agriculture and commerce
expanded. Major concessions led to
foreign control over large sectors of the
economy
Although President Díaz brought many benefits to Mexico, he
was a dictator - a President who abused his power. Under Díaz,
a few land owners became very wealthy, but the majority of
Mexicans remained poor.

David Siquieros Mural: "Don Porfirio [Diaz] and his Courtesans". 1957-65
 The Rebellion Begins
During the first
years of the 20th
century, a new
generation of
educated, young
Mexicans that did
not belong to Díaz'
group desired
change. For the first
time in thirty-three
years other political
parties were formed.
The Revolution Begins!
General Victoriano Huerta
General Huerta established a
military dictatorship in Mexico!
For almost 11 years, civil war
raged across Mexico as various
rebel groups fought for power.
The most important insurgent
leaders of the Constitutionalist
Movement were Venustiano
Carranza, Francisco Villa, and
Emiliano Zapata.
 Emiliano Zapata

Emiliano
Emiliano Zapata
Zapata
wanted
wanted massive
massive
land
land reforms
reforms that
that
were
were expressed
expressed in
in
his
his motto
motto “Tierra
“Tierra yy
Libertad”
Libertad” (Land
(Land
and
and Liberty).
Liberty).
 Pancho Villa
Pancho Villa led Villa lead and fought in a
peasant rebels in the decades worth of battles for
north and attacked the cause with his army
the Federal Army.
known as "The Dorados"
(The Golden Boys). The name
was ironic considering that
they were mostly makeshift
Revolutionaries who were
recruited from village to
village where Villa and his
men would pillage to have
water, food and women.
During the course of the
Revolution in Mexico, Villa
seemed to be blessed never
sustaining life threatening
injuries.
The revolutionaries, including Francisco Villa in the north,
and Emiliano Zapata in the south, began a struggle to
overthrow President Huerta.
Mexican Revolution
Soldaderas March

Las Soldaderas were women

"fighters" who made significant
contributions to both the federal and
rebel armies of the Mexican
Revolution. Though few actually
engaged in combat, their assistance to
male soldiers in fighting the war were
monumental.
 The Mexican Revolution mobilized large segments of the
population, both men and women. The Villista forces included
railroad workers, cowboys, and townsfolk who took up arms
against the army.
 A Step Toward Democracy?
Steady insurgent military pressure forced Huerta
to resign in July, 1914. When this happened,
Venustiano Carranza then assumed power.
Under Carranza's presidency a new
Constitution was adopted in 1917. The new
Constitution took into account individual and
social rights, particularly to protect the
workers and the peasants, and was very
nationalistic.
On April 10, 1919, Zapata was tricked into a
meeting with one of Carranza's generals who
wanted to "switch sides." The meeting was a trap,
and Zapata was killed as he arrived at the meeting.

In 1920, he tried to install a President that was favorable to him. Alvaro Obregon, who
was a candidate for president, rebelled.
 Alvaro Obregon
Obregón defeated Pancho Villa’s cavalry in a
series of bloody battles in 1915 and became
president in 1920..

Since
Since1920,
1920,with
withthe
theCivil
CivilWar
Warover,
over,aanew
new“Revolutionary
“RevolutionaryElite”
Elite”ruled
ruledMexico.
Mexico.
However,
However,the
theRevolution
Revolutionhad
haddevastated
devastatedthe
thenation.
nation.1.5
1.5million
millionwere
werekilled,
killed,
major
majorindustries
industriesdestroyed,
destroyed,ranching
ranchingand
andfarming
farmingwere
weredisrupted.
disrupted.
 Pancho Villa
1. In Jan., 1916, a group of Americans
were shot by bandits in Chihuahua, and
on Mar. 9, 1916, some of Villa's men
raided the U.S. town of Columbus,
N.Mex., killing some American
citizens. It is not certain that Villa
participated in these assaults, but he was
universally held responsible.
2. Wilson ordered a punitive expedition
under General Pershing to capture Villa
dead or alive. The expedition pursued
Villa through Chihuahua for 11 months
but failed in its objective. Carranza
violently resented this invasion and it
embittered relations between Mexico and
the United States.
July 20, 1923 Villa Assassinated
 Revolutionary Results
Some Real Changes:
•1917 Mexican Constitution
•Land reforms, limited foreign ownership of
key resources
•Guaranteed rights of workers
•restrictions on clerical education and church
ownership of property
•educational reforms
•Workers organized and were represented in
government
 General Lazaro Cardenas
A most significant political development
in Mexico since the Revolution came
with the election of General Lázaro
Cardenas as president in 1934. His
government carried out considerable
land reform, he reorganized labor, and,
most significant of all, he nationalized
the oil industry.

After Cardenas, the pace

of reforms slowed.
Although Mexico is a
democracy, one party
has dominated the
country since 1929 until
very recently. Petroleos
PetroleosMexicanos
Mexicanos
 Party of the Institutionalized
Revolution (PRI)
Partido Revolucionario Institucional

• Revolutionary leaders wanted to institutionalize the new regime.

• Created a One-Party System known as the PRI.
• Incorporated labor, peasant, military, and middle class sectors.
• They controlled politics sometimes through the use of repressive
means.
• Limited the President to a one six-year term.
The Institutional Revolutionary Party
(PRI)
Diego Rivera
Nationalism and
Indigenism take
hold in Mexico.
Attempts were
made to
“Indianize” Mexico.
Stressed
nationalism,
glorified the past,
and denounced
Western capitalism.
Indian
IndianWarrior
Warrior
Blood of the Martyrs fertilizing the earth
Frozen Assets
Dividing the Land
The exploiters
The Agitator
The Arsenal - Frida Kahlo distributes arms
Diego Rivera, Leon Trotsky, and Andre Breton in 1937
 Man at the Crossroads 1934. Painted by Diego Rivera. Fresco. This
painting had been contracted to be made in the RCA building
(Rockfeller Center) in New York City in 1932. Before being able to
complete the fresco, Rockfeller, seeing the revolutionary connotations
within, demanded Rivera take Lenin out of the painting. Rivera refused
to censor his work, and the entire Fresco was destroyed. Rivera would
Film
later
FilmClip
Clip start reproduce a smaller version of this Fresco in Mexico City.
start
atat4:31
4:31
Epic of The Mexican People Today and Tomorrow
 Economy
• For many years, Mexico followed a policy of economic
nationalism. The government imposed high tariffs to protect
local industries. By 1974, Mexico borrowed heavily from
foreign nations to develop its oil industries.
• By the 1980s, Mexico was in a debt crisis.
• More recently, Mexico moved toward free trade, or trade that
had low tariffs and no restrictions.
 NAFTA
• NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement)
Mexico __________,
• Members were the countries of _________, Canada and
the United States
________________.
• NAFTA would abolish most tariffs on goods traded among
the three member nations.
• Goal - Expand economy by building closer ties with U.S. and
Canada.

Film Clip
 CHALLENGES

Many Mexicans hoped that free trade would attract foreign

investment and create new jobs. Based on this cartoon, what is the
concern of some in the United States?
CHALLENGES
 Zapatistas
Calling themselves Zapatistas in honor of
Emiliano Zapata, some nearly 2000 masked
rebels attacked and captured four towns in
Chiapas in 1994. They demanded work, land,
housing, food, health care, and education.

Choosing Zapata as a
symbol of the movement,
the Zapatistas tried to
show that the basic
problems of a fair society
remained unsolved and
that the revolution was
incomplete.
Film Clip
 POLITICAL CHANGE

1. Based on this cartoon, what role has the PRI played in Mexican
politics?
2. Explain how the cartoon anticipates a change in Mexican politics.
1. To what is the cartoonist comparing the PRI? Why?
2. Based on this image, what (or who) is going to bring about
change?
 Vicente Fox
Member of the National Action Party (PAN) was elected
president at the end of 2000, thus ending the PRI’s dominance of
the political system of more than half a century.

A charismatic reformer, President Fox is

credited as playing a vital role in
Mexico’s democratization, and with
strengthening the country’s economy.
During his tenure, he succeeded in
controlling inflation and interest rates,
and in achieving the lowest
unemployment rate in all of Latin
America.
 Felipe Calderon
Mr. Calderon's decision to pursue the drug
cartels and traffickers seems to be the
defining element of his presidency.
More than 30,000 people have died in drug-
related violence since 2006: A sign for some
the gangs are being squeezed, while others
see the rising murder rate in parts of Mexico
as an indication of the traffickers' power.

The issue of illegal migration, and the treatment of

Mexicans on the border, is a source of abiding
tension between the US and Mexico.
President Calderon has argued for immigration
reform in the US, where there are an estimated 12
million illegal immigrants.
Mr. Calderon's term in office also coincided with
the global economic downturn. Given its close
trading relationship with its northern neighbor,
Film Clip Mexico is exposed to US weaknesses.
 Enrique Peña Nieto
57th President of Mexico

His
Hiselection
electionmarked
markedthe
thereturn
returnof
of
the
thePRI
PRIafter
afteraatwelve-year
twelve-yearhiatus.
hiatus.

Marches
Marchesagainst
againstPeña
PeñaNieto Nietodrew
drewtens
tensofof
thousands
thousandsofofpeople
peopleacross
acrossMexico,
Mexico,whowho
protested
protestedthat
thatduring
duringitsitstime
timeininpower,
power,the
thePRI
PRI
became
becameaasymbol
symbolofofcorruption,
corruption,repression,
repression,
economic
economicmismanagement
mismanagementand andelectoral
electoralfraud.
fraud.

Peña
PeñaNieto
Nietopromised
promisedthat
thathis
hisgovernment
governmentwould
would
be
bemuch
muchmore
moredemocratic,
democratic,modern
modernand
andopen
opentoto
criticism.
criticism.

He
Healso
alsopledged
pledgedtotocontinue
continuethe
thefight
fightagainst
against
organized
organizedcrime
crimeand
anddrug
drugtrade
tradeand
andthat
thatthere
there
would
wouldbe beno
nopacts
pactswith
withcriminals.
criminals.[[