Ricardo Flores Magón observed the Mexican Revolution from United States exile, but his understanding of events, demonstrated in this collection of essays from 1914 editions of Regeneratión, exceeded that of his contemporaries. The editors of this volume are correct in their assertion that United States intervention at Veracruz is one of the least understood episodes of the Revolution. The publication of Flores Magón’s analysis of the events as they unfolded is part of the effort to reassess the significance of the April 1914 undertaking.
For Flores Magón, the following were some of the essential elements to consider. The occupation constituted an invasion of Mexico that all the citizenry should have opposed. It was part of a pattern of United States government hostility toward the “Huertistas, Zapatistas, libertarios, Vazquistas, etc.,” and “support of Carranza.” These actions were rooted in the defense of the interests of American companies. United States policy is determined by and for a privileged few. Its democracy is an illusion. In failing to resist, Carranza and Villa sold out.
Without access to documents now available to historians, Flores Magón correctly analyzed United States hostility to Zapata and the projected occupation of Mexico City to forestall a working-class takeover. He pointed out the importance of Cuban and Gulf Coast ports in the arms traffic between the United States and the Constitutionalists when the 1914 embargo was imposed. Finally, he appreciated the significance of Carranza and Wilson’s alliance at Niagara Falls.
Ironically, he overlooked the importance of Veracruz being handed over, with its full warehouses, to an otherwise beaten Carranza. He consistently underrated Villa and lost an important potential ally.
This book is a useful contribution to the study of the Mexican Revolution.
