legacy of revolution
Gonzales makes a great point in his conclusion, which helps sum up cause of the Mexican Revolution, “Mexicans had fought over land since colonial times, during the unprecedented convergence of land consolidation, population growth, and inflation in food prices resulted in a groundswell of protest that resulted in revolution” (Gonzales, 263).
I see the same revolutionary spirit in today’s citizenry. The rights to freedom and liberty have become part of the social and political fabric of Mexico, as well as other democratic countries around the world.
The question asked is whether or not the Revolution still have “legs.” After reading Gonzales’ book, The Mexican Revolution 1910–1940, as well as Hernandez’ Bad Mexicans, I find that the same individualism and nationalist movements formed during the 1910 Revolution still thrive today. The right to protest, the guarantee of civil liberties, and the right to vote have replaced and silenced the guns of war.
Kelly Lytle Hernandez’s book, Bad Mexicans, and Mariano Azuela’s book, The Underdogs, both offer glimpses into the human element of revolution. Hernandez’ book gave me a better understanding of the Mexican-American border during the early part of the twentieth-century.
When the citizens of Mexico rose up against the Diaz dictatorship, a group called the “magonistas.” Named after Ricardo Flores Magon, the magonistas were a group of rebels who fled Mexico for the United States and who vowed to overthrow Diaz’ regime. Ironically, Diaz saw the United States as a bigger threat to his dictatorship. Hernandez writes, “But the root of the problem was not in Mexico, insisted Diaz. The problem was in the United States” (Herandez, 3). Diaz saw a large contingency of rebels over the border who sought to overthrow him.
What I found interesting is that Hernandez’s book offers a look at the border war from Ricardo Flores Magon’s and his followers’ perspective. Many times it is Villa and Zapata who dominate the rebellious side of the revolution. Magon predates the rise of Villa and Zapata and gives the reader better insight into the borderlands.
By protesting and seeking to overthrow Porfirio Diaz, the magonistas also came into conflict with the United States and its pro-Diaz policy. Mexico at that time was seen as a friendly place for industrialists and others who wished to capitalize on big industry and big business. Hernandez’ book also suggests that the borderland and the issues during the Mexican Revolution led to a rise in the population of Mexican-Americans in the border states. Hernandez writes that, “Historians estimate that 100,000 Mexicans immigrated to the United States between 1900 and 1910” (Hernandez, 79).
Ultimately, Hernandez’s book offers a look at the forgotten story of how the United States and the federal government intervened during Mexico’s revolution. It reminds the reader that economic and financial gains sometimes overshadow the fight for liberty and freedom.
I see the activism and desire for change being the legacy of the revolution. So in that regards, the future has been shaped by the events of the past.
Books Cited
Gonzales, Michael J. The Mexican Revolution, 1910–1940. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2002.
Lytle Hernández, Kelly. Bad Mexicans. W.W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2022.
