Important Open Circle announcement

Don Aiken has had to postpone his presentation on Solar and Climate Change. The new speaker will be at LCS as usual.

4 February. Gringophobia: Mexican Anti-Americanism Past and Present

Presented by Andrew Paxman

Opinion polls show that Mexican feelings towards the USA are largely shaped by the occupant of the White House, and since January 2017 those feelings have turned majority-negative. But it’s not just a matter of recent bombast. Long-held prejudices have been resurrected. By surveying the history of “gringophobia” since the Mexican Revolution – especially through the life and times of expat businessman William Jenkins, once the richest man in the country – we can see how anti-Americanism has often been used by Mexican politicians for political gain. This in turn helps explain some of the rhetoric in Mexico’s current campaign season.

Andrew Paxman is author of Jenkins of Mexico: How a Southern Farm Boy Became a Mexican Magnate (Oxford, 2017) and coauthor of El Tigre: Emilio Azcárraga y su imperio Televisa (Grijalbo, 2000/2013). He teaches history and journalism at the CIDE in Aguascalientes and Mexico City.