The National Antorcha Movement developed in the early 1970s as a response to the government’s neglect of the needs of rural Mexican peasants. It was founded by a group of professors and students from the National School of Agriculture. The leader of this group (and now the national leader of the movement) is Aquiles Córdova Morán. As the movement grew, it gained a large following of poor rural peasants, recognizing that the industrialization of Mexico City was leading to mass migration into the city. As peasants migrated, they built and inhabited informal settlements that grew rapidly and were unrecognized by the Mexican government. Antorcha became the figurehead for these peasants and continued to fight and lead large groups of people against the governing party of Mexico. They gained political power over the party, and many prominent leaders of the movement found themselves in official governmental postions.
The Antorcha movement gained political power through the people that they led and represented. They provided peasants with infrastructure and water as well as the capital to build their own homes and settlements. In return, residents of the settlements controlled by the movement are required to attend organization meetings, other events, and most importantly vote for the leaders of the movement in elections. In exchange for political power, the movement provides services to the settlements that the government would otherwise ignore.
Design and Social Movements
Michael Amidon
