{"id":720,"date":"2017-02-03T13:34:37","date_gmt":"2017-02-03T20:34:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/?page_id=720"},"modified":"2017-07-22T13:49:17","modified_gmt":"2017-07-22T20:49:17","slug":"page-for-carroll","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/energy-foreign\/page-for-carroll\/","title":{"rendered":"Resistance to Privatization of Oil in Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: left\">\u00a0<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2197\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2197\" style=\"width: 697px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2197\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/Okeowo-Gasolinazo-690.jpg\" alt=\"Okeowo-Gasolinazo-690\" width=\"697\" height=\"450\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2197\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">&#8220;Repeal the gasoline tax&#8221; (Credit: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/news\/daily-comment\/the-gas-price-protests-gripping-mexico\">The New Yorker<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\">Franz Carroll<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Since January 1, 2017, people across Mexico have been mobilizing in resistance to the privatization and price liberalization of the oil industry. Protesters have occupied gas stations and shut down highways for days at a time. This is all in response to what is known as &#8220;Gasolinazo&#8221;: hikes in gas prices resulting from de-subsidizing gas and the broader movement towards neoliberal policies and denationalization of industries.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>From Private to Public to Private<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2194\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2194\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2194 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/300px-Gulf_Offshore_Platform.jpg\" alt=\"300px-Gulf_Offshore_Platform\" width=\"300\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/300px-Gulf_Offshore_Platform.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/300px-Gulf_Offshore_Platform-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2194\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">An offshore oil platform owned by Pemex (Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/doliaestevez\/2013\/12\/11\/mexico-reverses-history-and-allows-private-capital-into-lucrative-oil-industry\/#2c50a9f196f1\">Forbes<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Mexican oil industry has been run by the state-owned company Petr\u00f3leos Mexicano \u2013 known as Pemex \u2013 since 1938 \u2013 when President L\u00e1zaro C\u00e1rdenas expropriated foreign companies from the U.S., Britain and the Netherlands through a constitutional amendment (Estevez). Since then, Pemex has controlled Mexico\u2019s oil production, exports and imports (Telesur 2016). The Mexican government, in addition to publicly controlling the means of producing oil, has subsidized its cost for consumption. These subsidies have translated to affordable prices at the gas pump for the Mexican people, many of whom make less than minimum wage (Woody). <\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This nationalization of the oil industry, along with other protectionist policies implemented during this era, helped Mexico replace much of its imports with domestically manufactured goods. In addition to nationalization of industries these policies included subsidies, progressive taxes, and high tariffs. These import-substitution\u00a0policies resulted in a period of economic growth, known as \u201cThe Mexican Miracle,\u201d which coincided with the post-World War II &#8220;golden age of capitalism&#8221; in the U.S. This all changed in the 1980s, when the <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/energy-foreign\/the-nationalization-of-iranian-oil\/\">I<\/a><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/energy-foreign\/the-nationalization-of-iranian-oil\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">ranian Revolution <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">resulted in an decreased price of oil on the global market. Mexico then had a balance of trade deficit and went into debt, so instituted austerity policies and desubsidized key industries (Solis).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>Constitutional reform<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2205\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2205\" style=\"width: 435px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2205\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/800px-Mexico_Chamber_of_Deputies_backdrop.jpg\" alt=\"800px-Mexico_Chamber_of_Deputies_backdrop\" width=\"435\" height=\"290\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/800px-Mexico_Chamber_of_Deputies_backdrop.jpg 800w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/800px-Mexico_Chamber_of_Deputies_backdrop-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/800px-Mexico_Chamber_of_Deputies_backdrop-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 435px) 100vw, 435px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2205\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mexican Congress (<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Mexico_Chamber_of_Deputies_backdrop.jpg\">Public Domain<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Ever since the late 1970s and the dawn of the neoliberal era, reprivatizing Pemex has been a goal of proponents of free market capitalism \u2013\u00a0including North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) negotiators, the World Bank, Woodrow Wilson Center\u2019s Mexico Institute (funded by the U.S. State Department), and the Mexican Business Association, or Coparmex (Carlsen). According to documents revealed by WikiLeaks in 2015, Hillary Clinton&#8217;s U.S. State Department heavily supported and promoted the shift towards oil privatization in Mexico (Telesur 2016). Current Mexican president Enrique Pe\u00f1a Nieto finally proposed the reform in summer 2013 as a part of a larger reform agenda (Estevez). Pe\u00f1a Nieto promised this reform would \u201cgenerate more energy, more cheaply for all Mexicans\u201d (Carlsen). As of early 2017, it is looking like the reform has done the exact opposite.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Both of the dominant parties, President Pe\u00f1a Nieto\u2019s Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the National Action Party (PAN) supported the reform and it passed in Congress on December 10, 2013 despite opposition from the left-wing Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) (Estevez). In May 2014, a second package of legislation submitted to Congress by President Pe\u00f1a Nieto passed. The legislation established the rules and procedures that would dictate how this new system would work (Carlsen).<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>The way it works<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2207\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2207\" style=\"width: 660px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2207 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/76796834_179202047-1.jpg\" alt=\"_76796834_179202047-1\" width=\"660\" height=\"371\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/76796834_179202047-1.jpg 660w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/76796834_179202047-1-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2207\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">(Credit: <a href=\"http:\/\/ichef-1.bbci.co.uk\/news\/660\/media\/images\/76796000\/jpg\/_76796834_179202047.jpg\">BBC<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The legislation permits Pemex to sign profit-sharing contracts, production-sharing contracts, and licenses with private companies (Estevez). Profit- and production-sharing contracts allow for the private company to aid in extraction in exchange for a cut of the profit or oil production, respectively. Licenses, according to <em>Forbes<\/em>, are little more than a euphemism for concession. Through these contracts, private companies will pay royalties to Mexico\u2019s Central Bank in order to have full control of the oil at the wellhead (Estevez). According to Enrique Ochoa, the Deputy Energy Minister, \u201cCompanies will be allowed to register the economic interests of the risk-sharing contracts &#8230; that allow converting that value into volume while the state maintains full ownership\u201d (Carlsen). In November 2016, multinational oil corporations, including ExxonMobil and Chevron, were able to bid on the rights to oil and gas exploration in Mexico for the first time (Di Carli).\u00a0These gradual privatization efforts were likely used to prevent initial public dissent and protest.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>Effects of privatization<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The ruling PRI initially predicted in 2014 that these reforms would result in lower gas prices within two years, 2.5 million new jobs over 10 years, and an increase in GDP of one percent by 2018 (Carlsen). Privatization opponents in the PRD, on the other hand, predicted that the reforms would \u201cundermine Mexico\u2019s sovereignty\u201d and hurt the national economy (Estevez).<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Initial speculation<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">As early as 2014, <em>Huffington Post<\/em> and other news sources were questioning the Mexican government\u2019s claim that this privatization scheme would reduce corruption (Carlsen). Some of the companies that were slated to take advantage of the reforms when they went into effect were Shell, Chevron, ExxonMobil Corp., and Repsol SA (Spinetto &amp; Case). Shell specifically was sued by Pemex for being involved in a scheme to illegally smuggle oil out of Mexico, and the other three companies have disappointing social and environmental records as well (Carlsen). Even Oceanografia, a private company that Pemex already subcontracts to, was investigated for fraud in 2014 (Carlsen). These instances show that private sector is not immune to fraud or illegal activities, and these illicit actions are not limited to government officials and public employees.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Another early speculation was that oil privatization would not be as financially beneficial to the Mexican people as claimed. Cuauht\u00e9moc C\u00e1rdenas,a Mexican politician who is a son of the president who originally nationalized Mexico\u2019s oil, criticized the privatization on the basis that fossil fuels are nonrenewable and the Mexican reserve will eventually run out. He asked, \u201cWhere is the rational policy for managing reserves that give security to the country in the long term for a resource that is finite\u2026?\u201d (Carlsen). Mexico should be working towards reducing its dependency on fossil fuels, rather than banking on the privatization of its oil industry to stimulate its economy. It is a short-sighted and temporary solution, only guaranteed to help the already rich and powerful. It is more likely than not, if the scheme is successful at generating revenue, that only ones to benefit will be the already wealthy elites of Mexico and giant multinational corporations and not the general Mexican population (Solis).<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Gasolinazo price liberalization<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2209\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2209\" style=\"width: 376px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2209\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/ap16366547382108-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"ap16366547382108\" width=\"376\" height=\"251\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/ap16366547382108-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/ap16366547382108-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/ap16366547382108-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/ap16366547382108.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 376px) 100vw, 376px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2209\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">People rush to buy up gasoline before the price hike on January 1 (Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/static1.businessinsider.com\/image\/5867fe14ee14b62a008b606d-2400\/ap16366547382108.jpg\">Business Insider<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">By far the largest impact from the increased privatization of Mexico\u2019s oil has been the price liberalization and resulting price hikes. Price liberalization is a process by which, through reducing government involvement in an industry, the price of a commodity is allowed to return to its market value. But people in Mexico were reliant on the government subsidized reduced price of oil. It allowed a populace\u00a0 with drastic wealth inequality and high rates of poverty to be able to afford everything from fuel and electricity to basic necessities like food. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">On December 27, 2016 the Finance Ministry announced that starting January 1, 2017 the price of gas would be increased by between 14% and 20% for the month of January (Woody). As a result, gas stations across the country were mobbed by consumers trying to buy up the last of the gas they would be able to get at the lower, subsidized prices (Woody). After January 1, there was an increase in oil thefts, supposedly carried out by drug cartels trying to make a profit selling it at a lower cost on the black market (Solis). Because of the price hikes, it now costs Mexicans the equivalent of <em>12 days of minimum-wage labor to fill a single tank of gas<\/em> \u2013\u00a0this is compared to the average <em>seven hours<\/em> of minimum-wage labor in the U.S. necessary to afford a tank of gas (Solis). <\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2195\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2195\" style=\"width: 780px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2195 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/170207132801-chart-mexico-gas-price-780x439.jpg\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/170207132801-chart-mexico-gas-price-780x439.jpg 780w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/170207132801-chart-mexico-gas-price-780x439-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/170207132801-chart-mexico-gas-price-780x439-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2195\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">(Credit: <a href=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/money\/dam\/assets\/170207132801-chart-mexico-gas-price-780x439.jpg\">CNN<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">On January 10, the Mexican Employers\u2019 Association, Coparmex, asked for the price hikes to be temporarily be put on hold because of how they were affecting business. They requested that \u201cmeaningful budget cuts\u201d be made instead (Garcia). The government rejected this request, saying that price liberalization was necessary for the government to continue to afford social programs without raising taxes (Garcia, Woody). And in the Age of Austerity, raising taxes \u2013\u00a0especially on the wealthy or on businesses \u2013 is politically unheard of, but whether this addition funding will actually go towards social spending is yet to be seen.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>Resistance <\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Responding to calls on social media and earlier scattered protests, Mexicans across the country took to the streets on January \u00a01 \u2013 the 23rd anniversary of the Zapatista uprising in Chiapas \u2013 \u00a0to resist the Gasolinazo (Woody). Diverse groups\u00a0of people participated in these demonstrations, including transportation workers, students, social workers, union members, farmworkers, activists, and politicians.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Transportation Workers\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2191\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2191\" style=\"width: 453px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2191\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/s2.reutersmedia.jpg\" width=\"453\" height=\"305\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2191\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protests against Gasolinazo in Monterrey on January 5 (Credit: <a href=\"http:\/\/s2.reutersmedia.net\/resources\/r\/?m=02&amp;d=20170106&amp;t=2&amp;i=1167814398&amp;w=&amp;fh=&amp;fw=&amp;ll=780&amp;pl=468&amp;sq=&amp;r=LYNXMPED050VE\">Reuters<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Uber and taxi drivers were another group hit particularly hard by the Gasolinazo. These workers, both unionized and not, were some of the driving force behind protests in the states of Puebla, Veracruz, Guerrero, and Michoac\u00e1n, where gas shortages had made it difficult for them to work and earn a living (Woody). These transportation workers were joined by social workers in Puebla and students in Michoac\u00e1n. In Guerrero and Michoac\u00e1n, blockades forced almost 100 gas stations to shut down (Woody). This protest tactic is effective at hitting the oil industry where it hurts and garnering attention for the cause.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left\">Blockades, shut-downs, and occupations<\/h3>\n<p>Protests across 28 of the 32 Mexican states and in the Distrito Federal (Mexico City) lasted two weeks straight, and in some cases more. These protests have included blockades of major roads, shut-downs of gas stations, occupations of government buildings. In those two weeks, more than 2,000 people were arrested \u2013\u00a0primarily for property damage \u2013\u00a0and at least six died and many more injured (Garcia, Pichardo). By the third day of protests, Pemex issued a statement that in at least three different states, protesters blockading oil terminals had led to a \u201ccritical situation\u201d (Alper &amp; Diaz). Despite all the attempts by government forces, they have been largely ineffective at pacifying the resistance.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2214\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2214\" style=\"width: 660px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2214 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400\" width=\"660\" height=\"440\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2214\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protesters block the entrance to a Pemex gas station (Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/static3.businessinsider.com\/image\/586c13d7ee14b61c008b6492-2400\">Business Insider<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Some of the largest turnouts were in the capital, Mexico City. Hundreds marched through the streets and blocked road access to surrounding neighborhoods (Woody). They chanted and carried signs that read \u201cNo al Gasolinazo\u201d (No to Gasolinazo) and \u201cFuera Pe\u00f1a\u201d (Pe\u00f1a Nieto Out). In total, over 23 stores were looted and 27 blockades built, according to the mayor of Mexico City, Miguel Angel Mancera (Okeowo). Demonstrators occupied major toll highways and allowed drivers to cross into the State of M\u00e9xico for free for the first three weekends of January (Pichardo, Okeowo).<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2200\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2200\" style=\"width: 482px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2200 \" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/screen-shot-2017-01-03-at-41513-pm-1024x570.jpg\" alt=\"Traffic in Chihuahua resulting from a blockade (Credit: Business Insider)\" width=\"482\" height=\"268\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/screen-shot-2017-01-03-at-41513-pm-1024x570.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/screen-shot-2017-01-03-at-41513-pm-300x167.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/screen-shot-2017-01-03-at-41513-pm-768x428.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/screen-shot-2017-01-03-at-41513-pm.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 482px) 100vw, 482px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2200\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Traffic in Chihuahua resulting from a blockade (Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/static4.businessinsider.com\/image\/586c152eee14b61c008b6497-1599\/screen%20shot%202017-01-03%20at%2041513%20pm.png\">Business Insider<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In Chihuahua, a Mexican state which borders the U.S., protesters blocked a rail line and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/animals\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">oil pipelines<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to shut down a Pemex gas station on January 2 (Woody). Twelve days later in the same state, farmworkers occupied municipal governments and forced them to be evacuated (Pichardo). In Jalisco, masked protesters confronted police forces directly, armed with stones and bottles. They were met with the full force of riot police, who dispersed the protesters using tear gas and pepper spray (Woody). These are just some of the many examples of direct action taken against across Mexico in the first weeks of January.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left\">Electoral politics<\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Gasolinazo and resulting protests have had a devastating effect on President Pe\u00f1a Nieto and his\u00a0government\u2019s popularity. His approval rating reached an all-time low for modern Mexican presidents, at a dismal 12% (Solis, Agren). <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Various political parties and affiliations have attempted to seize the opportunity to capitalize on the Mexican people\u2019s anger and discontent at the current government, and redirect it to serve their own interests. The <em>New Yorker<\/em> observed that this has led to a discord of leadership within the movement, as each group has \u201cits own distinct interests\u201d \u2013\u00a0and the people are noticing (Okeowo). Other parties both left and right were quick to distance themselves from this unpopular government. President Pe\u00f1a Nieto received criticisms from the leftist PRD as well as the conservative PAN, both claiming that their own parties would not be responsible for any resulting social instability or inflation. A PRD leader even went as far as to call for a \u201cpeaceful revolution\u201d against \u201ca lying, treacherous government\u201d (Woody).<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2202\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2202\" style=\"width: 338px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2202 \" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400\" width=\"338\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 338px) 100vw, 338px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2202\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez Obrador delivers a speech to supporters in Mexico City (Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/static1.businessinsider.com\/image\/57ebfbbbb0ef97eb018b8c1a-2400\">Business Insider<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>There have also been attempts by smaller left-wing parties to absorb the movement base into their own membership to increase their own party\u2019s size and influence. Andr\u00e9s Manuel L\u00f3pez Obrador \u2013\u00a0a two-time presidential candidate who recently formed his own\u00a0left-wing party National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) \u2013 sought to show his party\u2019s support for the protests and to gain popularity for the 2018 election by showing up to protest in his state of Veracruz (Woody). The Mexican Socialist Workers Party (POS) also released a statement in January praising those who came out resist the Gasolinazo:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cPartido Obrero Socialista (POS) salutes all the men and women who have come out to protest against the increase in the price of gasoline and other energy products. You are currently the most conscious segment of our population. In addition, the hundreds of thousands of people who have taken to the streets throughout the country are being slandered as looters and thieves, a campaign promoted by the government, the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), and the media\u201d<\/span> <\/em><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">(Freedom Socialist Party). <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">While it is noble for these parties to be speaking out for those putting themselves at risk to resist the current government, it is yet to be seen if they will fight alongside the people for meaningful solutions, or if they will just accept their votes and be done with it. Either way, it is likely that the Gasolinazo will influence the presidential election in July 2018. L\u00f3pez Obrador, known widely as &#8220;AMLO,&#8221; is leading in the polls and this may finally be his chance at winning the office of president (Telesur, 2015).<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>Vibra M\u00e9xico <br \/>\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2196\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2196\" style=\"width: 435px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2196\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/94606458_stoptrump.jpg\" alt=\"_94606458_stoptrump\" width=\"435\" height=\"252\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2196\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Vibra M\u00e9xico demonstration in Mexico City (Credit: <a href=\"http:\/\/ichef-1.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/14DD4\/production\/_94606458_stoptrump.jpg\">BBC<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Concurrent to the Gasolinazo resistance, there has been another movement brewing called Vibra M\u00e9xico (roughly meaning &#8220;Mexico Moves&#8221;). On February 11, 2017, an estimated 11,000 people took to the streets in Mexico City to condemn U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s treatment and depictions of Mexico (Agren). The march itself was peaceful and featured leadership and participation from over 70 social and political organizations including civic groups, universities, NGOs and businesses (Agren, V\u00e9lez). Already Mexico has been seeing the negative effects of a Trump presidency. Right after Trump\u2019s election, the Mexican peso dropped 12% in value against the U.S. dollar and another 2.5% after he took office (Solis). This depreciation of the Mexican peso is supposedly in response to Trump\u2019s protectionist rhetoric that could greatly harm Mexico\u2019s trade relationship with the U.S. For example, Ford Motors has cancelled its plans for a new plant in Mexico in favor of investing further into existing infrastructure in the U.S. (Romero)<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2211\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2211\" style=\"width: 660px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2211 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/94606048_trump.jpg\" alt=\"_94606048_trump\" width=\"660\" height=\"371\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/94606048_trump.jpg 660w, https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/94606048_trump-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2211\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protestors hold up both a Trump pi\u00f1ata and a sign criticizing Pe\u00f1a Nieto (Credit: <a href=\"http:\/\/ichef-1.bbci.co.uk\/news\/660\/cpsprodpb\/1485C\/production\/_94606048_trump.jpg\">BBC<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">People attended the rally to protest Trump, carrying signs that read \u201cStop Trump!,\u201d but there was also anger directed towards President Pe\u00f1a Nieto, with signs reading \u201cFuera Pe\u00f1a!\u201d (Grant). This is after a controversial meeting between Pe\u00f1a Nieto and Trump \u2013 who was then campaigning \u2013 was cancelled due to controversy over who would pay for &#8220;the wall&#8221; (Diaz).\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This anger directed towards Pe\u00f1a Nieto was quite a polarizing element at the march. Mexican historian Enrique Krauze said about the anti-Pe\u00f1a Nieto sentiment at the march,<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cDon\u2019t forget: Mexico lost the war of 1847 and half its territory due to all the internal divisions\u201d (Agren). Organizers of the event called for the march to be a sign of national unity in the face of a hostile foreign leader (Grant). Despite this, many rejected the rhetoric, questioning whether the calls for unity were genuine, or just unnecessary demands for nationalism and support for a \u201clesser evil.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Alejandro V\u00e9lez, a Mexican professor of political science said, \u201cThe only thing that worries me is whether this type of march will not in fact sidestep and stifle the indignation and rage that has been piling up at \u2026 the incommensurable social cost of ten years of war and decades of poverty, exclusion and inequality\u201d (V\u00e9lez). The concerns that the anger towards the Mexican government about the Gasolinazo, among other issues, will be co-opted and directed instead towards a toothless, nationalist program primarily in opposition to Donald Trump is legitimate, and needs to be countered, not through forced and artificial unity, but through mutual struggle and coalition building. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>Resilience<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2213\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2213\" style=\"width: 452px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2213\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/270\/2017\/02\/protesta-gasolinazo-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"protesta-gasolinazo\" width=\"452\" height=\"343\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2213\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protesters hold signs reading &#8220;Fuera Pe\u00f1a&#8221; \u2013 or, &#8220;Pe\u00f1a Out&#8221; (Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.liberationnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/protesta-gasolinazo.jpg\">Liberation News<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Since the start of the Gasolinazo protests and the Vibra M\u00e9xico march, there has been a great deal of analysis of the lasting effects of these protests, and whether this moment of resistance can be transformed into a movement for resilience. Law professor <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Luis G\u00f3mez Romero questions whether the final result will be a \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lrb.co.uk\/2011\/08\/19\/slavoj-zizek\/shoplifters-of-the-world-unite\">zero-degree protest<\/a>\u201d<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u2013 violent action without concrete goals or demands \u2013\u00a0or the start of a \u201cMexican Spring\u201d (Romero). It may be too early to know, but there are other movements we can look towards to compare this one to to predict its trajectory. \u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Parallels can be drawn between the resistance movement happening currently in Mexico to the movement that happened recently in Nigeria. In 2012, the Nigerian government also removed its fuel subsidies, but, in response to a mass movement of tens of thousands of people, the decision was reversed (Okeowo). There have been a multitude of other social movements across the globe that those resisting the Gasolinazo can learn from \u2013 adopting the successful tactics and being conscious of the mistakes. These include the Occupy movement, the Arab Spring, Black Lives Matter, European anti-austerity protests, and more (V\u00e9lez). The Mexican government has shown it is unwilling and incapable of providing for the economic and material well-being of its citizens, making it necessary for the Mexican people to take matters into their own hands by learning from other movements and further developing and expanding their own, already existing culture of resistance. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>Various existing unions and organizations need to form coalitions and work together to mobilize different sects of the Mexican population to work together cooperatively. The National Teachers&#8217; Union (CNTE) has a history of mobilizing both teachers and community members. The National Indigenous Caucus (CNI) movement mobilized against drug cartels and the 2014 Ayotzinapa student massacre. The Zapatistas also have the capacity to organize students and workers. Working together these groups have the potential to rally the people and transform this moment into a lasting movement. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>Sources<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Agren, D. (2017, February 12). <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/the_americas\/mexicans-march-to-prot  est-trump--but-also-their-own-leaders-and-politicians\/2017\/02\/12\/6cc9b29a-efcc-11e6-a100-fdaaf400369a_story.html?utm_term=.efe538e4e550\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Mexicans march to protest Trump \u2014 but also their\u00a0<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/the_americas\/mexicans-march-to-prot%20%20est-trump--but-also-their-own-leaders-and-politicians\/2017\/02\/12\/6cc9b29a-efcc-11e6-a100-fdaaf400369a_story.html?utm_term=.efe538e4e550\">own leaders and politicians<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Washington Post. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Alper, A. &amp; Diaz, L. (2017, January). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-mexico-gasoline-idUSKBN14P0HP\">Mexico gas price hike spurs looting, blockades as <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-mexico-gasoline-idUSKBN14P0HP\">unrest spreads<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Reuters.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>BBC Business. (2014, August 7).\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/business-28685504\">Mexico approves oil sector reforms<\/a>.\u00a0<i>BBC News.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Carlsen, L. (2014, May 29). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.huffingtonpost.com\/laura-carlsen\/mexicos-oil-privatization_b_5400076.html\">Mexico&#8217;s oil privatization: Risky business<\/a>. <i>Huffington Post.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Diaz, D. (2017, January 25).\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2017\/01\/25\/politics\/mexico-president-donald-trump-enrique-pena-nieto-border-wall\/index.html\">Mexican president cancels meeting with Trump<\/a>.\u00a0<em>CNN.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Di Carli, G. (2016, December 28). <a href=\"http:\/\/Export-Import Bank gave $8.5bn to Mexico oil firm despite deadly accidents. Guardian US.\">Export-Import Bank gave $8.5bn to Mexico oil firm <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/Export-Import Bank gave $8.5bn to Mexico oil firm despite deadly accidents. Guardian US.\">despite deadly accidents<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Guardian U.S<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Estevez, D. (2013, December 11). <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/doliaestevez\/2013\/12\/11\/mexico-reverses-history-and-allows-private-capital-into-lucrative-oil-industry\/#2c50a9f196f1\">Mexico reverses history and allows private capital into <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/doliaestevez\/2013\/12\/11\/mexico-reverses-history-and-allows-private-capital-into-lucrative-oil-industry\/#2c50a9f196f1\">lucrative oil industry<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Forbes<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Freedom Socialist Party. (2017, January).\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.socialism.com\/drupal-6.8\/statements\/defeat-gasolinazo\">To defeat the Gasolinazo<\/a>. <i>Freedom Socialist Party.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Garcia, D. &amp; Diaz, L. (2017, January 10). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-mexico-gasoline-idUSKBN14U2Q1\">Mexico&#8217;s Pemex says protests cause &#8216;critical&#8217; <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-mexico-gasoline-idUSKBN14U2Q1\">border city fuel shortage<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Reuters.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>Gillespie, P. &amp; Charner, F. (2017, February 8). <a href=\"http:\/\/money.cnn.com\/2017\/02\/08\/news\/economy\/mexico-trump-el-gasolinazo-gas-prices\/index.html\">Mexico&#8217;s biggest fear right now is not Donald Trump, it&#8217;s gas\u00a0<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/money.cnn.com\/2017\/02\/08\/news\/economy\/mexico-trump-el-gasolinazo-gas-prices\/index.html\">prices<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">CNN.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Grant, W. (2017, February 23). <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-latin-america-39051201\">Mexico anger ahead of Tillerson visit<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">BBC News. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Okeowo, A. (2017. January 24). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/news\/daily-comment\/the-gas-price-protests-gripping-mexico\">The gas price protests gripping Mexico<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The New\u00a0<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Yorker.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Pichardo, G. (2017, January 14). <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.liberationnews.org\/gasolinazo-2017-mexico-rises-up-against-oil-tycoons-right-wing-government\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Gasolinazo 2017 \u2013 Mexico rises up against oil tycoons,\u00a0<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.liberationnews.org\/gasolinazo-2017-mexico-rises-up-against-oil-tycoons-right-wing-government\/\">right-wing government<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Liberation News.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Rivera, H. A. (2017, January 10). <a href=\"https:\/\/socialistworker.org\/2017\/01\/10\/pena-nieto-adds-fuel-to-the-fire-in-mexico\">Pe\u00f1a Nieto adds fuel to the fire in Mexico<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Socialist <\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Worker<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Romero, L. G. (2017, January 18). <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usnews.com\/news\/best-countries\/articles\/2017-01-18\/in-mexico-gas-prices-spark-revolts\">In Mexico, gas prices spark revolts<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">U.S. News &amp; World Report<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Roos, D. (2017, February 22). <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.seeker.com\/billionaire-carlos-slim-is-building-mexican-made-electri  c-cars-2277969887.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Billionaire Carlos Slim Is Building Mexican-Made Electric <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Cars. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Seeker.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Solis, J. (2017, January 7). <a href=\"https:\/\/inlocopolitico.com\/2017\/01\/07\/gasolinazo-2017-mexican-gas-crisis\/\">Gasolinazo 2017: Mexican gas crisis<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In Loco Politico.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Spinetto, J.P. &amp; Case, B. (2014, January 26). <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2014-01-27\/pemex-ceo-sees-first-production-ventures-as-early-as-this-year\">Pemex CEO Sees First Production Ventures <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2014-01-27\/pemex-ceo-sees-first-production-ventures-as-early-as-this-year\">as Early as This Year<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bloomberg.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Stargardter, G. (2017, February 23). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-mexico-leftist-romo-idUSKBN1612VP\">Mexico presidential frontrunner might halt\u00a0<\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-mexico-leftist-romo-idUSKBN1612VP\">new energy contracts: adviser<\/a>. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Reuters.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>Telesur. (2015, August 3). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.telesurtv.net\/english\/news\/Leftist-Leader-Lopez-Obrador-Tops-Polls-for-2018-Mexican-Race-20150803-0009.html\">Leftist Leader Lopez Obrador Tops Polls for 2018 Mexican Race<\/a>.\u00a0<em>Telesur English.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Telesur. (2016, December 23).\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.telesurtv.net\/english\/news\/After-Privatizing-Oil-Mexico-Becomes-Net-Importer-of-US-Fuel--20161223-0007.html\">After privatizing its oil, Mexico becomes net importer of US fuel<\/a>.\u00a0<i>Telesur English<\/i>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">V\u00e9lez, A. \u00a0(2017, February 14). <a href=\"https:\/\/www.opendemocracy.net\/democraciaabierta\/alejandro-v-lez\/from-gasolinazo-to-vibra-m-xico-trivialization-of-resentment\">From the Gasolinazo to Vibra M\u00e9xico: the trivialization of <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.opendemocracy.net\/democraciaabierta\/alejandro-v-lez\/from-gasolinazo-to-vibra-m-xico-trivialization-of-resentment\">resentment<\/a>. O<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">penDemocracy.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Woody, C. (2017, January 3). <a href=\"http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/mexican-protests-gas-price-increase-oil-theft-2017-1\">&#8216;We are going to remember it at the polls&#8217;: Outcry about <\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/mexican-protests-gas-price-increase-oil-theft-2017-1\">fuel price hikes may be trouble for Mexico&#8217;s government. <\/a><\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Business Insider. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0 Franz Carroll Since January 1, 2017, people across Mexico have been mobilizing in resistance to the privatization and price liberalization of the oil industry. Protesters have occupied gas stations and shut down highways for days at a time. This is all in response to what is known as &#8220;Gasolinazo&#8221;: hikes in gas prices resulting &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/energy-foreign\/page-for-carroll\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Resistance to Privatization of Oil in Mexico<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":444,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/720"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=720"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/720\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/ccc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}