Mexico
Mexican pseudo-left and the anti- gasolinazo protests
By Eric London, 14 January 2017
The MTS is appealing to Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s nationalist and pro-capitalist Morena to lead opposition to the gasolinazo subsidy cuts.
Mexican protests continue as consumer prices rise
By Rafael Azul, 12 January 2017
Sections of the Mexican ruling class are posturing as opponents of the gasolinazo subsidy cut.
Mexican government, trade unions mobilize against protests to pave the way for Trump
By Rafael Azul and Eric London, 10 January 2017
In response to mass demonstrations against gasoline subsidy cuts, the government and trade unions are policing popular anger in order to lay out the welcome mat for Trump.
Four dead, 1,000 arrested as demonstrations continue across Mexico
By Eric London, 7 January 2017
With the police cracking down on demonstrations, the trade unions and bourgeois “left” are struggling to contain the growing protest movement.
Strikes spread in Mexico, thousands of police deployed to capital
By Neil Hardt, 6 January 2017
The trade unions and the National Regeneration Movement (Morena) are being mobilized to strangle the growing movement against cuts in gas subsidies.
Protests against gas price hikes spread across Mexico
By Eric London, 5 January 2017
The Mexican government’s decision to cut gas subsidies has provoked widespread demonstrations, road blockades and gas station occupations, sparking fears within the ruling class of a social explosion.
Massive explosion kills 31, injures scores at fireworks market in Mexico
By Genevieve Leigh, 22 December 2016
A massive chain-reaction explosion erupted at one of the largest fireworks markets in the country in Tultepec, just north of the capital.
Following Trump election, Mexico begins to move towards deepening ties with China
By Clodomiro Puentes, 16 December 2016
In the weeks following the election of Donald Trump, the Mexican ruling class is preparing for an unfavorable turn in trade relations with the US along with increased social unrest.
After Trump victory: Mexican peso plummets amid ruling class unease
By Clodomiro Puentes, 18 November 2016
The election of Trump and his stated positions on immigration and foreign trade have created a mood of unease in Mexican ruling circles.
Mexican defense secretary calls for more troops, greater powers in waging “war on drugs”
By Kevin Martinez, 31 October 2016
General Salvador Cienfuegos says the army is worn down after a decade of fighting drug cartels, but has asked for the military to be expanded and take an even greater role.
Mexican and US autoworkers face Ford plant shutdowns
By Marc Wells, 28 October 2016
Ford is suspending production in the US and Mexico in the face of declining sales.
Two years since the kidnapping of the 43 Ayotzinapa students in Mexico
By Rafael Azul, 26 September 2016
Two years after the disappearance of the teaching students from Ayotzinapa, Mexico, the Peña Nieto administration continues to shield the real culprits.
Trump outlines ten-point plan for mass deportations and martial law
By Eric London, 2 September 2016
In his anti-immigrant speech in Phoenix, Arizona, the Republican candidate laid out a plan to deport millions of undocumented workers using violent police state methods.
Mexican government prepares crackdown against striking teachers
By Clodomiro Puentes, 1 September 2016
As Mexican teachers continue their struggle, union officials are collaborating with the political forces that helped bring about the right-wing education “reform.”
Investigation accuses Mexican federal police of summary executions in May 2015 raid
By Kevin Martinez, 27 August 2016
The country’s human rights commission accused the federal police of executing at least 22 suspects during a raid last year on a suspected drug cartel.
Lopez Obrador reaches out to Mexican ruling elite
By Don Knowland, 19 August 2016
Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador announces that if he wins the presidency in 2018 he will not investigate or prosecute prior office holders and their accomplices for corruption.
US Justice Department blocked prosecution of HSBC bank for drug cartel money laundering
By Gabriel Black, 15 July 2016
The House Financial Services Committee report makes clear that the Obama administration’s failure to hold criminally liable a single leading Wall Street figure is the result of a highly conscious and systematic policy.
Teachers union reaches agreement with Mexican government as blockades spread
By Neil Hardt, 29 June 2016
The CNTE and Morena are maneuvering to prevent opposition to education reform from developing into a direct confrontation between the working class and the Peña Nieto government.
Massive rally in Mexico City condemns massacre of Oaxaca teachers
By Rafael Azul, 28 June 2016
A week after the police massacre of teachers and their supporters in Oaxaca, people across Mexico continue occupations and to disrupt of highway traffic in protest.
Michigan public school teacher messages of solidarity with Mexican teachers
By , 27 June 2016
Michigan public school teachers express their support for teachers in Oaxaca and throughout Mexico in the face of last week’s government massacre.
The Oaxaca massacre and the eruption of class struggle in Mexico
By Neil Hardt, 25 June 2016
The resurgence of class struggle expressed in the protests of Mexican teachers is part of a growing radicalization of workers internationally.
Teacher protests, barricades continue after massacre in México
By Rafael Azul, 23 June 2016
Teachers and their supporters continue to struggle in Mexico against the education reform law, while union leaders meet with the government.
Nochixtlán massacre witnesses: Mexican police fired automatic weapons at demonstrators
By Neil Hardt, 22 June 2016
The death toll has risen to 11 in Sunday’s police massacre of striking teachers and their supporters in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca.
Police kill eight striking Mexican teachers in Oaxaca massacre
By Don Knowland, 21 June 2016
Federal police fired on protesting teachers in order to clear a blockaded highway, killing eight and wounding over 50.
Unite US and Mexican workers!
The working class must stop the Carrier factory closures!
By Jerry White—Socialist Equality Party candidate for president, 18 June 2016
The fight to defend jobs requires a unified fight against the capitalist system
Mexico’s national teachers strike enters second month
By Don Knowland, 16 June 2016
Efforts by teachers to roll back the regressive federal education reform face increasing government repression.
Teachers in widespread walkouts in Mexico
By Don Knowland, 19 May 2016
The strike is in opposition to a 2013 law that gave new powers to the government to monitor, test and fire teachers en masse.
Independent panel reports on the disappearance of Mexican normalistas
By Don Knowland, 25 April 2016
The report charges that the government blocked key lines of investigation, mishandled evidence, used torture and protected officials suspected of participating in the disappearance.
Ford announces new small-vehicle plant in Mexico
By Marc Wells, 22 April 2016
Ford Motor Co. unveiled its plan to invest $1.6 billion to build a new small-vehicle plant in Mexico which will employ 2,800 workers.
Thirteen Mexican oil workers reported killed with toll rising at Pemex plant
By Bill Van Auken, 22 April 2016
The plant was turned over to Mexichem as part of the government’s privatization drive, and workers reported that safety and maintenance had been neglected.
Eighteen teachers jailed as police crack down on protests in Mexico
By Neil Hardt, 18 April 2016
Thousands of teachers mobilized across the states of Oaxaca, Chiapas, Guerrero, Michoacán and Veracruz against President Peña Nieto’s education reform plan.
New testimony exposes Mexican government’s complicity in Ayotzinapa massacre
By Neil Hardt, 16 April 2016
Previously unreported testimony shows that federal police were involved in the September 2014 attacks that resulted in the disappearance of 43 student teachers.
Mexican government employing torture in US-backed anti-immigrant drive
By Neil Hardt, 6 April 2016
Targeting migrant workers and children, the Pena Nieto administration’s crackdown is backed by billions in weapons and training aid from the Obama administration.
Mexican Nissan workers in two-day strike
By Shannon Jones, 5 April 2016
The walkout by more than 5,000 workers brought production to a halt at the Nissan plant in the industrial City of the Valley of Cuernavaca.
Mexican government obstructs investigation into disappearance of the Ayotzinapa 43
By Don Knowland, 4 April 2016
The Mexican government is threatening to shut down an investigation by independent experts of the disappearance of the student teachers and seeks to buy off their parents.
Mexican Congress lays legal foundation for martial law
By Neil Hardt, 1 April 2016
An amendment to the Mexican Constitution would grant the president dictatorial powers to establish a state of emergency and suspend democratic rights.
Mexican union leaders paid over $30 million for imposing cuts on oil workers
By Neil Hardt, 17 March 2016
A report from the daily La Jornada reveals that leaders of two major Mexican unions were given kickbacks in return for renegotiating the contract with Pemex.
Steel workers strike in Mexico
By Rafael Azul, 10 March 2016
Striking steel workers at ArcelorMittal in the port city of Lázaro Cárdenas are demanding the rehiring of laid-off workers.
Peña Nieto joins Mexican ex-presidents in denouncing Trump
By Bill Van Auken, 8 March 2016
The right-wing representatives of the Mexican bourgeoisie fear that Trump’s campaign will interfere with their collaboration with Washington.
The Pope visits Mexico
By Clodomiro Puentes, 20 February 2016
The papal tour was paid for by the government and wealthy Mexican businessmen, who clearly saw it as a means of defusing mounting popular anger.
Families of Americans killed by Mexican drug cartels sue banking giant HSBC
By Genevieve Leigh, 16 February 2016
The families charge HSBC with providing “material support” to the killers by laundering drug money.
Gang warfare continues to infest Mexican politics
By Don Knowland, 12 January 2016
The new mayor of Temixco in Morelos state, near Mexico City, was assassinated the day after being sworn in.
Strongest hurricane ever recorded makes landfall in Mexico
By Evan Blake, 24 October 2015
As of this writing, there have been no reported deaths or injuries from Hurricane Patricia, but many are predicted to perish in the days to come.
Global protests mark anniversary of Mexican massacre
By Rafael Azul, 2 October 2015
Around the world, students, workers and youth demanded justice for Mexico’s missing 43 normalistas.
São Paulo rally for Ayotzinapa: “The resistance has got to be shared... it has to be international.”
By our reporters, 2 October 2015
Demonstrators said that the same kind of repression seen in Mexico is being carried out in Brazil.
International probe exposes Mexican government in case of 43 missing students
By Rafael Azul, 10 September 2015
The disappearance of the students in Iguala almost one year ago stands exposed as an act of political terror by a government that has lost all legitimacy.
US, Mexican and Canadian autoworkers face common fight
By David Brown and Jerry White, 12 August 2015
As talks for a new labor contract continue, the US-based automakers are threatening to shift more production to Mexico and other lower wage countries.
Thousands protest torture-murder of Mexican photojournalist and four women
By Rafael Azul, 6 August 2015
Behind these savage killings is a campaign to silence critics of the regime and defenders of human rights.
Mexican elections held under conditions of police-military siege
By Rafael Azul, 9 June 2015
The government of President Peña Nieto mobilized military and police forces across Mexico to prevent protests by teachers and youth.
Lawmakers push to expand offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico
By Matthew Taylor, 4 June 2015
Bills have recently been introduced in the US Senate that would expand oil drilling off the coast of Florida and Alabama.
Mexican elections overshadowed by political crisis
By Don Knowland, 2 June 2015
After a year that saw the disappearance of the 43 Ayotzinapa students, polls show that eight out of ten voters do not trust the major political parties.
Mexican president deploys military in Jalisco state
By Kevin Kearney, 25 May 2015
The military operations of the Peña Nieto government are aimed at a far more dangerous internal enemy: Mexico’s increasingly restive working class.
Mexico farm workers’ struggle winds down as negotiations continue
By Clodomiro Puentes, 29 April 2015
By isolating the strike to the San Quintin region, the union leaderships have allowed the growers to take advantage of the precarious social position of the farm workers.
Family members of disappeared Mexican students appeal for support in US
By Seraphine Collins, 22 April 2015
”The US holds a lot of responsibility for what’s happening in Mexico,” the mother of one of the disappeared students told the World Socialist Web Site.
Mexican police confront immigrant protest caravan
By Rafael Azul, 20 April 2015
This year’s protest attacked President Peña Nieto’s Southern Border Program, designed to block the movement of immigrants toward the US.
Drownings in Rio Grande increase after US Border Patrol expansion
By Kevin Martinez, 14 April 2015
Drowning deaths along the US-Mexico border have spiked since last fall as the Border Patrol increased its surveillance.
At least four killed in PEMEX explosion in Gulf of Mexico
By Jake Dean, 2 April 2015
The oil rig disaster has unfolded in the midst of Mexico’s accelerating privatization of its state-owned oil firm, PEMEX.
Six months since the disappearance of the 43 Mexican students
By Rafael Azul, 2 April 2015
Thousands marched and rallied in Mexico City demanding justice for the disappeared rural student teachers.
FICUNAM 2015: Part 3
Pedro Costa’s Horse Money, Jean-Marie Straub’s “leftism” and other problems
By David Walsh, 25 March 2015
The recent FICUNAM festival in Mexico City screened a number of films which, while not belonging to a single school by any means, provide the opportunity for something of a generalized overview.
Mexican migrant workers strike over wages and working conditions
By Rafael Azul, 23 March 2015
On Wednesday, March 17, thousands of agricultural workers went on strike in the Mexican state of Baja California.
FICUNAM 2015: Part 2
The rule and the exceptions—three good films: Court, National Gallery and The Gold Bug
By David Walsh, 20 March 2015
There are filmmakers who devote themselves seriously and conscientiously to representing life, not life in the abstract, not “life as a river,” but concrete life, the life of social classes and relationships.
FICUNAM 2015
An interview with Alejo Moguillansky, co-director of The Gold Bug
By David Walsh, 20 March 2015
David Walsh spoke to Alejo Moguillansky, the co-director of The Gold Bug, in Mexico City during the FICUNAM film festival.
FICUNAM 2015: Part 1
A remarkable film festival in Mexico City
By David Walsh, 18 March 2015
David Walsh and Joanne Laurier recently attended the film festival associated with the National Autonomous University of Mexico in Mexico City.
Mexican government announces budget cuts in response to economic turmoil
By Don Knowland, 6 February 2015
The Mexican government is imposing deep budget cuts in response to a drop in oil prices and the global economic downturn.
At least two dead after gas explosion in Mexico City maternity hospital
By Kevin Martinez, 30 January 2015
A truck was supplying gas to the hospital when a hose apparently broke, causing a leak that resulted in the blast, which injured dozens.
Mexican government rushes to close case of disappeared students
By Bill Van Auken, 29 January 2015
Peña Nieto told Mexicans to get over the fate of the 43 students so he can move ahead with a “reform” agenda backed by Washington.
Mexico’s state oil company sacks thousands of workers
By Don Knowland, 20 January 2015
Amidst falling oil prices, attempts by Pemex to cut production costs while courting foreign energy investors will fall most heavily on workers.
Violence intensifies in Mexico as authorities unearth 10 headless bodies
By Jake Dean, 13 January 2015
Mexican police have yet to identify the victims, whose bodies were found in the state of Guerrero, where the disappearance of 43 students last September sparked nationwide protests.
Obama backs beleaguered Mexican president
By Bill Van Auken, 7 January 2015
Facing mounting calls for his resignation over the massacre of Mexican students, Peña Nieto discussed security, economic integration and immigration in a trip to Washington yesterday.
Forced labor on Mexican farms
By Norisa Diaz, 3 January 2015
Despite a wide array of anti-slavery laws and NGOs, there are currently 20.9 million people in forced labor worldwide.
Mexico intensifies persecution of Central American immigrants
By Adam Mclean, 24 December 2014
The Peña Nieto government’s crackdown on immigrants is being carried out in direct collaboration with the Obama administration.
Mexican federal police attack students and teachers in Guerrero
By Rafael Azul, 16 December 2014
An independent investigation has uncovered evidence of federal government and military involvement in the massacre and disappearance of the 43 normalistas in September.
DNA tests confirm charred remains belong to disappeared Mexican student
By Eric London, 9 December 2014
Amid the grim confirmation of the murder of normalista Alexander Mora Venancio, government threats are mounting against protests.
One hundred years since Zapata and Villa took Mexico City—Part 3
The historical significance of the Mexican Revolution
By Eric London, 6 December 2014
Despite the passage of a century, the impact of the Mexican Revolution still dominates all aspects of Mexican political and cultural life. This is the final part of a three-part series.
The Obama administration and disappeared Mexican students
By Marc Wells, 5 December 2014
The disappearance of 43 students in Mexico is the product not only of policies pursued by the Peña Nieto government, but those of Washington as well.
One hundred years since Zapata and Villa took Mexico City—Part 2
The historical significance of the Mexican Revolution
By Eric London, 5 December 2014
Despite the passage of a century, the impact of the Mexican Revolution still dominates all aspects of Mexican political and cultural life. This is the second of a three-part series.
One hundred years since Zapata and Villa took Mexico City—Part 1
The historical significance of the Mexican Revolution
By Eric London, 4 December 2014
Despite the passage of a century, the impact of the Mexican Revolution still dominates all aspects of Mexican political and cultural life. This is the first of a three-part series.
Thousands of Mexican workers and youth demand Peña Nieto’s resignation
By Rafael Azul, 3 December 2014
Protests over the disappearance of 43 students pose the question of who will rule Mexico.
Mexican President Peña Nieto announces police-state plan as more bodies are discovered
By Rafael Azul, 29 November 2014
The discovery of eleven decapitated youth adds to the long list of bodies that have been exhumed in Guerrero, both before and since the disappearance of 43 students.
Mexican military threatens intervention against mass protests
By Eric London, 22 November 2014
The entire political establishment in Mexico, backed by the United States, is implicated in the disappearance and likely massacre of the 43 student teachers.
Los Angeles: One thousand protest Mexican student massacre and disappearances
By Rafael Azul, 22 November 2014
Workers and students spoke about the massacre and abduction of teaching school students in Iguala, 43 or whom are still missing.
The disappeared students and Mexico’s deepening political crisis
By Don Knowland, 14 November 2014
The disappearance of 43 rural teaching students has contributed to a growing popular rejection of the major political parties in Mexico.
Angry protests sweep Mexico after government says 43 students are dead
By Don Knowland, 11 November 2014
The attorney general’s presentation of gang confessions claiming that the 43 missing students were killed and burned has further incited an outraged Mexican public.
Peña Nieto implicated in rail contract scandal
By Our reporter, 11 November 2014
The Mexican president’s private mansion has been linked toa multibillion-dollar contract awarded to a corporatesupporter.
More than 100,000 march in Mexico City over disappeared students
By Rafael Azul, 7 November 2014
Marchers demanded the resignation of President Peña Nieto over the government’s handling of the September 26 massacre and mass kidnapping.
Relatives of disappeared students confront Mexico’s president
By Rafael Azul, 31 October 2014
At a meeting with Peña Nieto, relatives of kidnapped students voiced anger over federal government inaction.
Political crisis deepens in Mexico as army is called on to testify on Iguala massacre
By Rafael Azul, 29 October 2014
A Congressional panel is calling on the defense secretary to testify on the role of the Army in the disappearance of students.
Mass protests in Mexico over Iguala Massacre
By Rafael Azul, 24 October 2014
Students are demanding that the investigation into the killing and abduction of their classmates be taken out of the hands of the government.
Mexico’s disappeared students
By Bill Van Auken, 22 October 2014
The disappearance of the 43 students in the southern state of Guerrero is bound up with the rising inequality and savage violence that go hand in hand with Mexico’s free market “reforms.”
Thousands protest disappearance of Mexican teaching students
By Don Knowland, 18 October 2014
Outrage remains widespread as the Mexican government has failed to reveal what happened to the missing students.
Protests across Mexico over disappearance of students
By Rafael Azul, 16 October 2014
At least 29 universities joined the protest walkout, and in Guerrero, 87 percent of schools were on strike.
Street battles erupt in Guerrero over disappeared Mexican students
By Rafael Azul, 15 October 2014
Students, education workers and families mobilized in Guerrero demanding the resignation of the governor and the return of the disappeared students.
Tens of thousands protest massacre of Mexican student teachers
By Rafael Azul, 10 October 2014
The killings have triggered a tidal wave of national anger that threatens the stability of the government of President Enrique Peña Nieto.
Burned bodies of 28 Mexican teaching students pulled from mass graves
By Don Knowland, 8 October 2014
Guerrero state authorities confirmed that a local gang tied to the Iguala mayor killed the students.
Mass grave found near disappearance of student protesters in Mexico
By Don Knowland, 6 October 2014
After a protest over school resources and jobs a week ago, teaching students in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero were shot at by local police and then rounded up and turned over to gang members.
Mexican government imposes education “reform” over teacher protests
By Don Knowland, 1 October 2014
Mexican President Peña Nieto signed into law a national system implementing standardized evaluations of public school teachers.
Peña Nieto pushes oil privatization in Mexico
By Eric London, 15 September 2014
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto used his September 2 State of the Union address to promote his agenda of turning over Mexico’s energy resources to foreign corporations.
Toxic wastewater from copper mine spills into river in northern Mexico
By Matthew Brennan, 20 August 2014
The disaster has cut off water supplies for over 20,000 people in Sonora.
Fourth major party formed as Mexican Congress passes oil legislation
By Don Knowland, 11 August 2014
The politics of López Obrador’s MORENA party serves sections of Mexican capital, not the working class.
Cargo train derails in Mexico, stranding 1,300 migrants
By Kevin Martinez, 12 July 2014
Wednesday's accident was at least the third derailment of trains carrying migrants across Mexico since last month.
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