POST-REVOLUTIONARY MEXICO: CULTURE, POLITICS, AND SOCIETY - HISTORY - 2025

Post-revolutionary Mexico is the term used by historians to define the era that followed the end of the Mexican Revolution. Although there are historiographic currents that disagree, most place their beginning in 1917 and the end in the early 1940s.

After years of war, the rulers who emerged from the Revolution had as their first objective to stabilize the country and provide it with more modern institutions. Mexico went from caudillismo to presidentialism, although in practice it would end up causing the appearance of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which ruled for seven consecutive decades.

Mural by José Clemente Orozco. Source: By Jose Clemente OrozcoThelmadatter (Self-published work by Thelmadatter), via Wikimedia Commons

The changes affected all areas, from the cultural to the social, passing through the political. There was a boom in Mexican nationalism, with a vindication of its culture as a way to consolidate the State.

During the post-revolutionary stage, after the end of the war, the country achieved a certain social peace. However, there were clashes between the most conservative classes, closely linked to the Church, and the most progressive, with a socialist tendency.

Historic context

Most authors place the end of the Mexican Revolution in 1917, with the promulgation of a Constitution drawn up by the victors of the conflict.

During this stage, the State acquired great importance in directing the national economy. Likewise, actions were taken to consolidate political institutions over personalities.

Similarly, and as a continuation of the revolutionary ideals, the laws tried to respond to the multiple challenges facing the nation: poverty and illiteracy of a large part of the population, little distribution of wealth, great power of the church, etc..

Culture

Although it also occurred in other parts of the planet, the increase in nationalist sentiment in Mexico had differential factors arising from the Revolution. The governments that emerged from it made an effort to structure the Mexican State and used this nationalism as a basis.

It was, as many authors claim, an attempt to consolidate the State in the exploitation of popular consciousness. All that feeling was reflected in much of the art of the moment. Among the most recurrent themes, apart from the Revolution itself and its leaders, was exalting the Mexican ideal.

Muralism

If there was an artistic genre characteristic of this period, that was, without a doubt, muralism. Its authors developed it not only for artistic reasons, but also for educational purposes.

In those decades it became the most essential expression to unify the country. For this reason, many consider it an authentic political and social movement.

The most important muralists were Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros and José Clemente Orozco. His works tried to teach the Mexican people their own history, reflecting situations that were linked to the abstract idea of ​​Mexico.

Along with the more or less historical representations, they also used the murals to promote ideas, such as indigenism, the fight against marginalization and the existence of the class struggle.

Literature

The literature of post-revolutionary Mexico was very marked by the so-called Narrative of the Revolution. This focused on what happened during that event, creating a mystique around its protagonists.

On many occasions, this story was also used as a backdrop to make a social literature or even to treat metaphysical or psychological problems.

Education

One of the fields of action considered by all post-revolutionary governments as the most important was education. It must be taken into account that a large part of the population was illiterate, with a special incidence among the poorest and indigenous communities.

The Constitution of 1917 established the gratuitousness of education, as well as its secularism. The authorities took action to bring that article to reality.

Álvaro Obregón's presidency began to worry about the issue and created the Secretary of Public Education. The fundamental personage in that organ was Vasconcelos, who initiated a massive campaign of literacy, the Cultural Missions.

Mass literacy

The Cultural Missions were intended to bring education to all corners of the country. Groups of rural teachers were formed in charge of educating the children who lived in these areas, usually with fewer economic resources and abandoned by previous administrations.

Post-revolutionary governments undertook the task of bringing this education to peasants and indigenous people. The stated purpose was to eliminate religious fanaticism, alcoholism, and tobacco. Likewise, they sought to promote a work culture, improve hygiene and save economic resources.

In just 20 years, between 1921 and 1940, the SEP managed to get 70% of the children across the country to school. This increased during the presidency of Lázaro Cárdenas, who came to speak of a national crusade for education.

Politics

After years of armed conflict and, although all the problems did not disappear, the Mexican situation turned towards greater political and social tranquility. This allowed the rulers to dedicate the resources towards economic improvement, which gave stability to the nation.

Alvaro Obregon

His predecessor, Adolfo de la Huerta, had managed to pacify the country. Villa and other revolutionaries laid down their arms and the political exiles returned. One of them was José Vasconcelos, who played an important role in public education.

In 1920, another of the heroes of the Revolution, Álvaro Obregón, became president. He immediately launched political marches aimed at reorganizing the country and revitalizing a ruined economy.

Obregón, a military man, had the army as his main support. He isolated the military leaders and allied himself with some worker and peasant organizations. To do this, he enacted laws to restore the ejidos.

One of his main political achievements was the recognition of almost all countries. The only ones who did not want to recognize his government were England, France, Belgium, Cuba and the United States.

In order to get the powerful neighbor to the north to agree to establish relations, he had to sign the Bucareli Treaties, which brought about favorable changes to the Americans in Mexican oil policy. This led to him being branded a surrender.

Plutarco Elías Calles

Elíass Calles carried out a continuity policy regarding Obregón. To consolidate power, he relied on numerous labor organizations, such as the Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers (CROM).

In the economic sphere, his presidency meant a general improvement, but in the social sphere he maintained strong clashes with the clergy. That confrontation led to a rebellion in several states that lasted three years, the cristera.

As early as 1928, elections brought Obregón back to the presidency. However, he was assassinated before taking office by a cristero. Politically, this crime began the period called maximato, which lasted until 1934.

The main characteristic of the maximato was the permanence of Calles as a central figure. He could not be president, but he became the Maximum Head of the Nation. The leaders of that period, Emilio Portes Gil, Pascual Ortiz Rubio and Abelardo Rodríguez, were managed by Calles.

Lazaro Cardenas

Lázaro Cárdenas is considered the last post-revolutionary president and the one who took the step to the next stage in the country's history. He based his government on the rise of the worker and peasant movements and developed a policy with socializing aspects.

To free himself from the shadow of Calles, Cárdenas decreed his expulsion from the country in 1936, accusing him of conspiring against the government. Free from their presence, he promoted presidentialism and created political structures that would remain stable until the late 1980s.

His government legalized the right to strike, benefited workers, enacted equality between men and women, and legislated to guarantee rights to indigenous people. Likewise, he highlighted his fight against fascism, which arose in Europe and would end up causing the Second World War.

Faced with his policy, an opposition front was formed, led by the National Action Party. Cárdenas, seeking to reduce his enemies, tried to reconcile with the Church. He kept her away from the state, but made no hostile gesture.

PRI background

The modern history of Mexico would not be understood without the PRI, the Institutional Revolutionary Party that ruled for several decades. This party had its origin in the post-revolutionary period.

The first embryo was the National Revolutionary Participation, created by Elias Calles in 1928. The organization was conceived as a mass party, defender of the workers and supporter of the distribution of wealth.

In 1938, Lázaro Cárdenas, after breaking with Calles, changed the name of the party, calling it the Party of the Mexican Revolution. Its structure included several workers' centrals. Later, in 1946, it was renamed the PRI.

It was during the Cárdenas presidency that the party system was instituted in Mexico. Starting in 1939, new organizations were able to stand for election. However, none of them managed to make their candidate win. It took several decades, until the year 2000, for Mexico to experience political alternation.

Society

The Mexican Revolution, apart from its political consequences, meant a change in the social structures of the country. Until that date, despite the attempts of some leaders, there was a part of the population below the poverty line, without education and with few rights.

This lower class was formed, especially, by peasants and indigenous people. In front of them, there was an upper class, who owned the land, and who held great economic and political power. Not in vain, one of the great slogans of the Revolution was to ask for agrarian reform. In the south, in addition, Emiliano Zapata defended the indigenous communities.

Agrarian bourgeoisie

One of the social changes within post-revolutionary Mexico was the coming to power of an agrarian bourgeoisie. This, tried to modernize the exploitation of the field, achieving better harvests.

To this must be added the different measures adopted by the governments to restore ejidos to peasants and indigenous people. Although, in practice, they did not end inequality, they did allow some improvement in their living conditions.

Industrial bourgeoisie

The emergence of the industrial bourgeoisie developed very slowly. During the Porfiriato, a good part of the productive fabric was in the hands of foreigners and the change was not easy. It was not until the 1940s that an authentic bourgeoisie of this type was formed, which managed to obtain shares of power during that decade.

Indigenism

As mentioned above, the post-revolutionary governments tried to improve the conditions of the indigenous people. On the one hand, through the named agrarian reform measures. On the other, with the literacy campaigns developed by the SEP.

References

1. Organization of Ibero-American States. Historical profile of Mexico (1821-1999). Obtained from oei.es
2. Collective Culture. Political change after the Mexican Revolution. Obtained from culturacolectiva.com
3. Barcelata Chávez, Hilario. The formation of a new state and the post-revolutionary economy (1921-1934). Recovered from eumed.net
4. Ernst C. Griffin, Marvin David Bernstein and Others. Mexico. Retrieved from britannica.com
5. Globalizing Mexico. Mexico's Cultural Revolution - Constructing the Postrevolutionary Nation. Retrieved from globalizingmexico.wordpress.com
6. Von Weigand, Ellen. How Mexico Formed A United National Identity Through Art. Retrieved from theculturetrip.com