Class Blog Post 1

Madero vs. the Lower Class

The Revolution envisioned by Francisco I. Madero and his middle class supporters is very different than that of the one envisioned by the lower class citizens of Mexico.  Revolution and change was very important to both sides, but for very different reasons.  Madero and his supporters wanted political, social, and economic reform that would both shake up the Diaz administration and provide some balance in the country.  He wanted to end the dictatorship that had ruled for so long and in turn create a democratic government in its place.  The lower class, however, wanted labor and land reforms in order to simply meet their day to day needs. 

Madero and his followers aimed to push things like the no-reelection policy and decentralization.  Madero’s goal was not to completely transform the policies that were in place from the Diaz regime, but to tweak certain things to allow for more stability and balance in Mexico.  Land disputes and reform regarding the distribution of land was low on their list of priorities, which upset the lower class citizens whose livelihoods depended on it.  Even after a visit to Morelos to see for himself what struggle the land issues had caused for people, which happened at the urging of Emiliano Zapata, Madero held to his belief that land issues should be settled in court rather than through government rule.

For the lower class citizens, labor reform and land reform were crucial to their survival.  Under the Diaz regime, Mexican citizens were treated far inferior to foreign workers.  This was blatantly apparent in the mining industry, among other things.  Mexican workers not only held the most difficult and dangerous jobs, but were paid just a fraction of what foreign employees made.  The local workers wanted better conditions and better pay, and less emphasis on obtaining and over paying foreign workers.  Another thing they wanted (or needed) during the Revolution was land reform.  Many had lost land to commercialization efforts.  Their downward spiral into extreme poverty was directly caused by Diaz’s policies and political agendas, which created a desire for the Revolution. 

After Madero became president, these differing goals became a growing issue for him.  The Zapatistas, with their new battle cry “land and liberty”, sought to establish some type of economic equilibrium in the country that would allow people in small towns and villages to actually survive.  Upset over his political appointees and his failure to implement reforms led to decreased popularity and caused Pasqual Orozco, a former supporter, to rebel against him.  With the help of General Huerta, Madero was able to defeat Orozco and hold on to his reign for the time being.