By Bernardo Moreno
The term «right» in politics was coined during the French Revolution by deputies who were in favor of the «royal veto» in the national assembly of 1789. All of them were aristocrats or members of the clergy, and occupied places of honor that were to the right of the president. To define the term right-wing in politics, let us see first what ‘ideology’ means.
According to the academic Herbert McClosky, ideology is a system of explicit, integrated, and coherent beliefs that justify the exercise of power, explain and judge historical events, identify what is right and wrong in politics, define the relationships between power and other fields of activity, and provide a guide for action. Some intrinsic features of the right are maintaining stability over change, maintaining a hierarchical order, manipulating tradition to make it a form of control benefiting a small group of individuals (elite), guarding their interests and privileges, and maintaining the status quo.
Today, the Mexican right, as in many parts of the world, is allied with big businessmen who do not want to lose their profits, with the media linked to the powers that be, bought intellectuals, and historically with the Catholic Church.
In Mexico, the right emerged as a response to revolutionary ideals during the six-year term of General Lázaro Cárdenas in 1939, supported by big businessmen opposed to the president’s vision. The government of Cárdenas was perhaps the one with the most leftist ideals and actions that the country has ever had. Among them were agrarian reform, whereby over 18 million hectares were distributed to communities and ejidos (communally held land), oil expropriation, the creation of the federal electricity commission, the emergence of the ejidal credit bank, the nationalization of the railways, and clear support of the labor movement. These highlighted the premise of the existence of the class struggle and the impossibility of cooperation with the capitalist class, among others. The National Action Party adopted the ideals of the Christian Democracy that emerged during the War of Reform within the Catholic Church in response to the reform laws promulgated by President Benito Juárez, which undermined many of the Church’s privileges. Acción Social, a movement of the Catholic Church during the government of Porfirio Díaz, promoted Catholics engaging in politics and activist work.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, capitalism as the hegemonic economic system in the West gave way to new principles based on the free market, private ownership of the means of production and the increase of capital. National companies began to disappear, or rather were privatized. They lobbied through reforms to form new monopolies that quickly amassed huge fortunes, skewed the distribution of wealth, and little by little destroyed public healthcare, education, social security, and social programs. Even pensions were privatized, and security deteriorated markedly. In short, there were terrible neoliberal actions six-year term after six-year term. Inequality increased, social discontent grew, violence spilled over. That was what 36 years of neoliberalism did.
One of the movements of the Mexican right is FRENA (Nationalist Front of Mexico) which promotes conspiracy theories, such as the Communist plan Mexico Foro Sao Paulo. It maintains that the current president of Mexico will create a dictatorship similar to that of Venezuela. The right-wing media and journalists have echoed this idea irresponsibly. During its most recent demonstration, it was documented that few people were inside the tents that were set up during the sit-in in CDMX, rather, there were cobblestones. Pro-Life is another right-wing movement. It is against euthanasia, stem cell research, and abortion and is in sync with the Catholic Church. Other movements in defense of privileges and the privileged are «The INE (National Electoral Institute) is untouchable,» and now, «The Supreme Court is untouchable.» These are clear responses to the reforms that the Mexican government wants to promote as part of the republican austerity that it has carried out since the beginning of this six-year term.
Finally, I must mention the fearsome alliance that has been formed between political parties to maintain some of their power. These are the same political parties that left the country on the verge of a social uprising. From the PRI, PAN, and PRD alliance we will see which candidate they support. On the business side is Gustavo de Hoyos, the right hand of Claudio X González, the main opponent of the current government. He acknowledges being fed up with politicians and thinks the Salvadoran government’s anti-gang security strategy can be replicated in Mexico.
Another enthusiast is Lily Téllez who claims to represent the modern right, although her explosive stance seems to be closer to the Spain’s VOX, the ultra right. Santiago Creel, an old acquaintance, also claims to be the good guy, but he is uncharismatic. The son of former Mexican President Miguel de la Madrid (1982-1989), Enrique de la Madrid is another contender. He says he has known Mexicans from his golden cradle, and intends to manage the country in macroeconomic terms. We are waiting for others to come out of the stable of the Mexican right.
Let us remember the ideals that fueled the French Revolution, which allowed changes and the end of the old regime, originated in the Enlightenment: equality, reason, freedom, and strong criticism of the privileges of the nobility and the clergy.
