Author: Kristen Quintana

By Kristen Quintana

Physical Geography &
Climate of Mexico:

Mexico has two major mountain ranges: Sierra Madre Occidental and Sierra Madre Oriental. Between these is the central plateau, a high flat land. Even though the location is tropical the climate is mild because of the elevation. Baja California is arid, flat, and very hot. The Yucatan Peninsula is mostly flat land with a lot of sinkholes. Lots of tourists like to go there.

Economy of Mexico:

Many Mexicans practice subsistence farming, which means they only grow enough crops to support their families. There are latifundios which are giant farms where they grow cash crops (corn, sugar cane, coffee, fruit) to earn money. Two of the major industries are petroleum and tourism. There are also a lot of maquiladoras which are factories that assemble products (mostly for the United States). Finally, lots of people become migrant workers that travel from place to place to find work cultivating or harvesting crops.

Quality of Life:

There are a lot of poor people that live in Mexico, particularly in the capital, Mexico City. They migrate there to find work and because the climate is so nice, but they do not have education or experience and often don’t find work or are underpaid. They live in “lost cities” which are like the favelas in Brazil. In Mexico a small percentage of the people have most of the wealth.

Politics:

Hernan Cortes conquered the Aztecs Mexico in 1519. The Spanish created new social classes called peninsulares (born in Spain), criollos (Spanish born in America), mestizos (mixed blood), and indios (natives). Miguel Hidalgo led the rebellion against Spanish rule. There was a war for independence and in 1821 they were free. In 1910 there was another revolution of peasants and the middle class against the dictator of Mexico, Porfirio Diaz.

Culture:

Challenges & Opportunities:

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