Urbanization Of Mexico Summary

To continue the modernization of Mexico’s economic system, Diaz encouraged foreign financial investment. The cientificos believed that Mexico’s “salvation lay in transforming Mexico into a white man’s country oriented by European values and customs.” More than before, Mexico’s politics became influenced by Western European and American economies. To accelerate economic growth, he began an industrial revolution. Mass railroad construction further industrialized the nation and promoted capitalism because it increased agricultural commercialization and the demands of petroleum and other natural resources. In essence, Porfirio Díaz worked to consolidate his control over the government by exercising power over rural regions with the help of the rural police force (rurales) and the military. The ownership of land remained in the the hands of the hacendados, who benefited from Diaz’s government legislations and displaced the rural laborers. Although these changes urbanized the former rural provinces, they failed to satisfy the needs of the lower class and rural laborers as it contributed to a gap in wealth distribution. The advantages of the reforms of the Porfiriato were not enough to counteract the growing opposition …show more content…
Unlike Diaz, Madero endorsed the rights to trade union organizations and the development of a national center. Former stable relations with the United States reflected the American sentiment of Madero’s approval of foreign investment and insurance of security, which favored US capitalist interests. Madero advocated for a stable relationship with the United States as he criticized Diaz’s counterproductive solely economic relations with the nation, which made Mexico’s economy heavily vulnerable to foreign