Mexico

What Mexico Can Learn from Haiti’s Development Plans

The idea sounds simple: Special Economic Zones (SEZs) offer tax exemptions and cheap labor as hooks to attract investment from foreign companies. Money trickles in, local suppliers get a foothold and the middle class begins to grow. At least, in theory. Mexico is betting big on SEZs, with a new federal law that will create four of … Read more

AQ Top 5 Jóvenes Políticos: Pedro Kumamoto

Read in English Con tan sólo 26 años, Pedro Kumamoto le dio la vuelta al libreto de la élite que gobierna México cuando ayudó a liderar una cruzada exitosa en contra de su privilegio más sagrado. En julio, cuando el Congreso del Estado de Jalisco votó a favor de quitarles a todos los funcionarios públicos … Read more

Why Mexico’s PRI Is Cleaning House

Mexico’s ruling party faces a difficult task convincing voters that its anti-corruption efforts are sincere.

Indigenous Imagery in the Art of Mariana Castillo Deball

In the late 1970s, the makers of an American antipsychotic drug called Stelazine were looking for a way to market their product to consumers in magazines and medical journals. The campaign they settled on featured indigenous masks and headdresses from Africa and Canada alongside slogans like, “Lift the mask of schizophrenic withdrawal.” For a version … Read more

Film Review: Tempest

“We know you haven’t done anything, but someone has to pay,” Miriam Carbajal recalls hearing from a court-appointed attorney before being put in jail. What started as a normal day at work turns into a five-month nightmare for Carbajal, one of the central characters in Tempest, an emotionally charged Mexican documentary by Salvadoran-born cinematographer Tatiana … Read more

AQ Top 5 Politicians Under 40: Pedro Kumamoto

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The “Wiki-politician” who is challenging Mexico’s governing elite with grassroots politics, a shoestring budget and a commitment to transparency.

This Man Is Brilliant. So Why Doesn’t Mexico’s Economy Grow Faster?

A great way to understand Agustín Carstens is to hear how he defines himself and his peers —“The Generation of 12.50.” That may sound obscure to outsiders, but anyone who grew up in Mexico during the 1950s, ’60s or ’70s instantly understands. For 22 consecutive years, the peso was fixed at exactly 12.50 per dollar … Read more

Sane la relación con México

Read in English Nota del editor: Al igual que a los otros autores, pedimos al Embajador Sarukhan que redactara un memorándum sin considerar quién ganará la elección de noviembre. Sin embargo, al final él llegó a la conclusión de que los dos escenarios eran tan opuestos que optó por escribir el memorándum como si Hillary … Read more

Ayude a los boomers a retirarse en América Latina

Leer en inglés Estimado(a) Sr(a) Presidente(a): Los baby boomers de Estados Unidos a menudo parecen representar las importaciones de mayor crecimiento en México. En la región del Lago de Chapala, en donde vivo, una cifra estimada de más de 10,000 estadounidenses –o el doble de ese número dependiendo de la época del año– llaman “su … Read more

Heal the Relationship With Mexico

Leer en español In the new issue of Americas Quarterly, we asked people, “What would you tell the next U.S. president about Latin America?” To see other authors’ responses, click here. Editor’s Note: As with our other authors, we asked Ambassador Sarukhan to write a memo regardless of who wins November’s election. However, he ultimately … Read more

Help Boomers Retire in Latin America

Leer en español Dear Mister / Madam President, U.S. baby boomers often seem like Mexico’s fastest-growing imports. In the Lake Chapala region where I live, an estimated 10,000-plus Americans — or double that number, depending on the time of year — call the area between the cities of Chapala and Jocotepec home. While most come … Read more

Collaborate with Mexico in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

In the new issue of Americas Quarterly, we asked people, “What would you tell the next U.S. president about Latin America?” To see other authors’ responses, click here. Leer en español Dear Mister / Madam President, Trade and U.S.-Mexico relations have been singled out as targets in this year’s election campaign, but the rhetoric overlooks … Read more

Another Dent in Enrique Peña Nieto’s Reform Agenda

Mexico’s President Enrique Peña Nieto seems to always pack a media relations strategy when traveling abroad, and this week’s trip to Canada has been no exception. Ahead of today’s North American Leaders’ Summit in Ottawa, Peña Nieto and Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shared policy concessions over social media, were spotted getting chummy at public … Read more

The Real Lesson of Mexico’s State Elections

Mexicans from the U.S. border to the Yucatan peninsula issued a strong rebuke to President Enrique Peña Nieto and his ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in state elections on Sunday. The PRI lost governorships in six of the nine states it held going into the vote, including four – Durango, Quintana Roo, Tamaulipas and Veracruz – … Read more

OAS Human Rights Chief: ‘Galling’ Errors, Obstruction in Case of 43 Missing Mexican Students

As president of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), as well as the group’s rapporteur for Mexico, James Cavallaro has been a driving force behind investigating what happened to the 43 Mexican college students who disappeared in September 2014. And he doesn’t pull punches in saying that the Mexican government failed to cooperate with the IACHR’s … Read more