Chapter 5: Progress

The attempt to integrate Latin America into the free flow of international trade was a liberal social and economic transformation that would change the future of Latin America and Europe. Latin America middle class was urging for more infrastructure and the industrial revolution in the US and Europe was producing far more capital to be invested also in Latin America, especially in coffee and sugar. Although the Industrial Revolution was only beginning, the real revolution was with the creation of railroads and the use of steamships, these new technologies spread the new agricultural investments everywhere. The introduction of a telegraph was also a great progress. The main idea was that Latin American “elite” wanted to be modernized, like the European society, so exporting was the best way to import progress from Europe. It’s not like there were no more caudillos and patrons, they were still there, part of the society, but the people were really getting into the new wave of progress brought by the liberals. The conservatives did not want progress, nor did the Catholic Church, with its power and wealth, conservatives wanted the “peaceful” times in the past where the mestizos knew their place, when they were not part of the progress.

The Mexico Example: Mexico is a great example about the Church power vs. liberals, since Church power was absolute in Mexico. The Catholic Church in Mexico owned lots of properties that never went through an agrarian reform, within time these properties grew so much to the point that the Church owned half of the farmland, plus other properties. The problem was that the conservative priests refuse to accept government over the clergy, it was a strong impact caused by the conflicts between religion and government. Eventually some liberals were able to impose a liberal reform, like the Juarez Law for example. Interesting enough the conservative European send Maximilian to be the Mexican emperor, and he actually tried to be “patriotic” eating Mexican food, dressing as a Mariachi, complete fail obviously, Juarez as a liberal and real nationalist was far more interesting and reliable to the Mexican population. It is interesting how Juarez was able to have the US as his ally to “get rid” of the French and eventually become president, eradicating the French and the power of the church in Mexico. Other countries as Colombia, Chile, and Honduras etc. went through similar events between liberals and the Church.

A very interesting point in my opinion was the idea of progress in Argentina and how different it was from other Latin America countries. Argentina’s liberals were able to really introduce the European culture to its people in a very different way, not imposing it through Church power, but actually investing on very close European ties in education, culture and all kinds of information influences, like books and newspapers. Also most of the liberal rulers in Argentina really invested in public education and really succeed in transforming Buenos Aires in a very European city until this day. Interesting enough the Argentinians still consider themselves much more European than Latinos, maybe they should all go back to Europe then….

Of course Brazil also had a very different history when compared to other countries in Latin America. Brazil had Pedro II, interesting character, a conservative with liberal ideas of progress, rare! To make it even more interesting he was actually very influential to Brazilian society in the sense that the Brazilian elite was also very conservative but at the same time with some liberal ideas. Eventually the liberals were able to achieve a lot of progress related to reforms and slavery, and Italians went to Brazil basically to do the former “slave work”. Whenever I read about Brazilian history I have the feeling the urban elite was far more into the liberal ideas, just because they really wanted to be more “European” and have access to progress and technologies, while the rural land owners really did not want to share their lands.