Mexican_and_Cuban_Revolution

1. Compare the social and economic results of the Mexican and Cuban revolutions, and develop on the similarities and differences in both cases. (Word limit: 700-850). Before tracing out the similarities between the Mexican and the Cuban revolution it’s important to realize what constitutes a revolution. A “Revolutions arise from hope- the stubborn belief that people may be able to change the desperate conditions of their lives for something better, but at the risk of losing everything including their lives”. Now that we have established what a revolution is, let me turn to the question as to what brought about the Mexican revolution' The brewing rivalry culminated in 1910, modernization schemes which had promoted capital from US, left peasants impoverished and without land as capitalists seized land for more and more plantations. The Cuban Revolution on the other hand emerged as somewhat of an “Anti America” phenomena, “observers have often noted that the extreme anti Americanism was the direct result of decades of US cultural , political , and economic domination of this small island nation”. Both Mexico and Cuba were big sugar exporters but Mexico also exported silver, coffee ,oil and fibres and we will see how Cuba’s sole reliance on sugar hindered their economic progress post revolution. In all these revolutions the most important institution was land tenure. A lot of resources were allocated to redistribution of land. This was in direct relation to gathering support for reformist parties in both Mexico and Cuba. These land reforms led to equal distribution of land, improving living conditions for the rural masses and promotion of economic development. Mexico’s revolution was one which believed in political superamacy to bring about a change while the Cuban revolution “turned to an armed struggle to bring about a change” .The Mexican revolutionaries had more of a focus on social reforms in the years of the revolution and it was only post 1940 that the emphasis was shifted to economic prosperity while the Cuban revolution from its very inception was also focusing on diversifying its economy. The method employed in land reforms differed in the two countries, in Mexico landed estates were devided into small subsistence plots for peasants while in Cuba collective farms were made with the intention of maintaining productive export agriculture and modernizing and diversifying the nonsugar sectors. Results of these land reforms also varied across the two countries. In Mexico even though there was a slight transition to communal land holdings, lands were of poor quality and peasants were granted little or no credit and technical assistance so there wasn’t any real increment in productivity. Even though you did have modernization, land was still mainly concentrated in the hands of rich Mexicans and foreigners. In Cuba in the meanwhile you had a massive reduction in large private holdings and massive increment in state holdings and these measures also led to an increment in employment. After the revolution the Mexican economy grew through foreign investments relying especially on import substitution industrialization and exporting oil in large quantities as there had been a shift from social reforms to economic policies. It is important to remember that Cuba was an agrarian society so Fidel Castro was focusing on export of agricultural products and modernizing and diversifying the nonsugar sectors but these attempts at economic diversification and industrialization had failed because of its antagonism with USA and its massive subsidies from Soviet Union. Eventually Cuba was left with only sugar as its export. Mexican leaders such as Zapalata and villa who had become revolutionaries were from middle class families and were usually mestizo so now with their success , you had a new elite which were the middle class families and which had replaced the landowning class so this led to somewhat of an increment in egalitarianism. Egalitarianism was way more pronounced in Cuba because assets were snatched away from foreign owners along with foreign enterprises and upper class families and either redistributed or used to provide health, education ,sewage system and other social services. State wages were granted and wage differences were reduced in Cuba , in Mexico too you had laborers which were organized and labor unions were formed, even though workers had better wages ,these labor unions were corrupt. Another difference which is very valid in the context of the long run consequences is that the Cuban Revolution didn’t only impact the soviet union and the US , it also impacted other countries in latin America , it provided other countries with the confidence and the motive to strive for agrarian reforms especially in chile and brazil so this brought about social reforms in a lot of other countries while the effect of Mexican revolution was more localized. Progressive as they might seem, Cuba’s social reforms were to some extent hindered by their economic stagnation because(as previously mentioned) agricultural diversity could not make up for the decline of sugar dependence they had been experiencing due to its cutback by Fidel Castro in recent years. In Mexico on the other hand it was the other way around, the emergence of the new economic elite led to the system becoming more institutionalized and ideas like justice and equality getting neglected. Cuba’s health indicators were way better than mexico’s considering their better infant mortality, better life expectancy and higher literacy rates which can be associated with confiscation of foreign businesses and through massive subsidies from the soviet Union in Cuba. Basically Cuba’s better health indicators can be put down to their redistribution of resources from the upper and foreign classes to the lower classes. Another difference between the two revolutions is that unlike in mexico you had massive emigration from Cuba which was mainly the upper and the middle class which mainly comprised of the educated class move out from Cuba so this could have affected the economic prosperity of the country too. Another instrument of progress could be the emancipation of woman. The picture of pre-revolutionary Mexican women was of a woman who had to lived her life constantly in the male shadow. When the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920 arose to fight against the discrimination that Diaz incorporated into his regime, women began to find a place for themselves. They were prominent political activists, thinkers, writers, figures, role models, and were fearless in their pursuit of their goals, often resulting in jail terms. Both upper and lower class women managed to get high in the ranks of politics despite the inequalities they had to face, and gained the respect of men and women alike.   Many of these female political figures also set the precedent for generations to come in their thinking and political tactics. Not only did these women find a place in society other than by the stove, they won the appreciation and respect of men and women around them. The Status of women in Cuba also improved post revolution as during the revolution they not only served amongst the army but were also assigned duties to educate the militia( as pointed out in the documentary), Fidel Castro didn’t want only mass killings and assassinations he also wanted doctors and educated people amongst his ranks so that they were not deceived by assailants and opposition political leaders. -------------------------------------------- [ 1 ]. (The path of revolution -before 1959, 288) [ 2 ]. (The path of revolution -before 1959, 288) [ 3 ]. The path of revolution -before 1959, 308) [ 4 ]. Fidelesmo and the Radicalization of Latin American Politics,46 [ 5 ]. The path of revolution -before 1959, 310 [ 6 ]. The path of revolution -before 1959, 312 [ 7 ]. The path of revolution -before 1959, 292 [ 8 ]. Cuba; The making of a Revolution,32 [ 9 ]. Jandura, revolutionary Mexican women