Leticia Neria PhD thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText ...

numbers of businessmen, workers and bureaucrats all grew. 26 Urban change was
portrayed in comics and films, and La Familia Burrón is an excellent example. When
the comic appeared in the late 1940s, the characters, from a low social class, struggled
over money every day, but over the years –as the country lived through the milagro
mexicano- the family saw an improvement in their way of life. They became lower
middle class, 27 with access to some services such as electricity, running water and
private bathrooms.
The president had plenty of freedom to designate candidates for political posts, 28
thus, Díaz Ordaz designated Luis Echeverría Álvarez as his successor, in the political
tradition known as ‘dedazo’. 29 Echeverría wanted to show that he was open to social
change, and that he would be a president who understood the contemporary democratic
times and would deliver reform. 30 Beginning with his presidential campaign, he made
‘de la autocrítica la piedra angular de su propuesta de gobierno’. 31 Hence, when he took
power he made it clear that he was open and tolerant of criticism and that he wanted to
reach out to young people. He also recognised the country’s problems, including
poverty, the uneven distribution of wealth and the existence of political prisoners –who
were liberated following his orders. 32 He asked for the support and trust of youth and
intellectuals and promised to fight against the ‘emisarios del pasado’, who were part of
26
Carlos Tello, ‘Sobre la desigualdad en México’… p. 40.
27
Harold E. Hinds, Jr. and Charles M. Tatum, Not Just for Children. The Mexican Comic Book in the
Late 1960s and 1970s, Contributions of the Study of Popular Culture, 30 (Westport, London: Greenwood
Press, 1992), p. 177.
28
Diana Margarita Favela Gavia, Protesta y reforma en México. Interacción entre Estado y sociedad
1946-1997 (Mexico: UNAM, Centro de Investigaciones Interdisciplinarias en Ciencias y Humanidades,
2006), p. 75.
29
In the practice known as dedazo, the president decided who the candidate would be from among a
group of his closest colleagues, usually secretaries of state. For a description of how this practice worked,
and how Echeverría’s designation occurred, refer to Jorge G. Castañeda, La Herencia. Arqueología de la
sucesión presidencial en México (México: Extra Alfaguara, 1999), pp. 321-335.
30
José Agustín, Tragicomedia mexicana 2. La vida en México de 1970 a 1988, 2nd ed. (México: Planeta,
2007), p. 11.
31
Loaeza, ‘Gustavo Díaz Ordaz...’, p. 293.
32
José Agustín, Tragicomedia mexicana 2… pp. 11-12.
47