Arguably the ultimate victor of the Mexican Revolution, Alvaro Obregon undertook Mexico's first "real" agrarian-land reform during his 1920-24 presidential term. He sent out agrarian investigators to Mexico's countryside to gather the information and data needed to undertake certain agrarian reforms. The still tense and dangerous political climate of post-revolutionary Mexico did not allow for swift reform on agrarian issues. Thus, Obregon was not able to fully act on all of the written reports and recommendations made by these investigators. It was the written recommendations of these agrarian investigators to Obregon that Lazaro Cardenas was later able to bring to fruition. Does this mean that Obregon's presidency was politically weaker than Cardenas'? What other factors may have played a role in slowing down Obregon's agrarian reforms of the early 1920's? Did agrarian reform ever have a realistic chance of long-lasting success in 1920's Mexico?
1 comment:
I agree with the original premise that the 1920's were a very difficult time to accomplish any real land reform. However, this may answer your question about whose presidency was politically stronger. Cardenas' apparent strength as a President had much to do with the fact that the Mexican "oligarchy" had grown weaker in the 30's and the ruling party itself had already attained a political machine-like status.
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