1. MEXICO Part 1

2.  one of the great revolutions in world history  modern constitution  A middle income country  longest ruling single-party government in history  nationalization of subsoil rights –managed reliance on export earnings  slow transition to democracy –greater consolidation, less risk of regression  transition from state-led development to neoliberal economic policy

3. Comparative revolutions, early 20 th century  Russia (1917)  China (1911)  Mexico (1910)  compare: –motivations –characteristics –outcomes

4. Comparative revolutions: motivations  Russia: –defeat authoritarian government; implement Marxist ideology  China: –Drive out ‘foreign devils;’ defeat authoritarian, weak government; assert nationalism  Mexico: –Defeat authoritarian government; break dependence on foreign nations; elite power struggle

5. Comparative revolutions: characteristics  Russia: –led by V.I. Lenin and Bolsheviks; violent, sudden change; carried out in middle of WW I  China: –regional warlordism; violent, sudden change; chaotic, competing forces  Mexico: –conflict among elites  joined by populist forces; sudden, violent change; chaotic, competing forces

6. Comparative revolutions: outcomes  Russia: –4 years of civil war; triumph of Marxism- Leninism; one-party state  China: –years of chaos, 2 competing forces; triumph of Maoism; one-party state  Mexico: –years of violence, instability; elites ‘umbrellaed’ under PRI for stability; one-party state

7.  the ‘Mexican miracle’: a model for LDCs –rapidly increasing GNP –orderly transition from authoritarian to democratic government  problems: –drop in oil prices, 1980s –mounting debt –ethnic conflict –political corruption, violence

8.  Mexico as an NIC –PPP $14,200 –58% employed in service sector –economically a developing country –politically a transitional democracy

9. sovereignty, authority and power  great fluctuation in sources of public authority –from arrival of Spaniards in early 16 th century to independence, 1821: rule by viceroy  centralized, authoritarian rule, no participation by indigenous people –from independence to mid-20 th century: rule by military generals –late 20 th century: economic growth  democratization

10. legitimacy  Revolution of 1910-11: source of legitimacy –revolution as a pathway to change –charismatic legitimacy –admiration for leaders: Miguel Hidalgo, Benito Juarez, Emilioi Zapata, Panch Villa, Lazaro Cardenas  revolution legitimized by formation of Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in 1929 –no successful challenge until late 20 th century

11. historical traditions  3 stages: –colonialism –chaos of 19 th – early 20 th centuries –recent period of economic growth  4 issues: –authoritarianism –populism –power plays/divisions within the elite –instability and legitimacy

12. political culture  strong sense of national identification based on common history, dominant religion and language  religion: –until 1920s. Catholic Church participated actively in politics –revolutionary era of early 20 th century, government moved toward an anti-cleric position –population largely devout Catholics whose religious beliefs influence their political values and actions

13. political culture, cont.  patron-clientelism: the glue that held an agrarian society together –network of camarillas –pressure to change due to democratization and industrialization –PRI’s loss of influence: a sign of decline of clientelism? –corporatism still plays a significant role in policymaking  Economic dependency: –Mexico has always been under the economic shadow of a more powerful country (Spain  USA)

14. geographic influence  extreme geographic diversity –mountains and deserts: separate regions, communications and transportation, limit productive agriculture –varied climates –natural resources: abundance of oil, silver –border with USA: migration and dependency issues –population: world’s most populous Spanish- speaking country –urbanization: ¾s of population lives in cities of interior or along coasts

15. Political and economic change  long history of authoritarian government –Spanish colonial rule: unlike British approach, allowed no local autonomy –mestizaje: unlike British, Spanish colonizers engaged in deliberate racial mixing, strict racial hierarchies –haciendas: caused indigenous people to lose control of the land  20 th century: populism, violence, instability  recent trend toward democratization

16.  Economic change: –for most of its history, Mexico’s economy was rooted in the primary sector: agriculture and mining –influence of USA: drive to industrialize –encouragement of foreign investment  dependency on foreign economies –struggle to manage dependence on oil –today, moving rapidly toward industrial or even post-industrial economy

17. colonialism  Spain, 1519 – 1821 –social hierarchy –cultural heterogeneity: mixing of populations  60% of Mexicans today are mestizo –Catholicism: aggressive and extensive missionary drive –economic dependency : controlled by mother country, existed to enrich it –authoritarian – no indigenous autonomy

18. Independence/new country  1810-1911 –wave of revolutions across Latin America in early 19 th century –popular rebellion against Spanish rule led by Miguel Hidalgo  Spain recognized Mexico’s independence in 1810 –Independence followed by instability  36 presidents in 22 years  rise of the military  domination by the USA  liberal vs. conservative struggle –Constitutionalism vs. authoritarianism