Mexico and America, Essay Example

Mexico and America: Cultural Differences

While America belongs to the global West and is a superpower of the world, Mexico is lagging behind in democracy and constitutional rights. However, the economic, political and international relations impact of Mexico should not be neglected, either. The below paper is attempting to review the cultural, social and economic differences between the two countries, in order to reveal the unique characteristics of Mexico.

The Culture of Mexico.

Today’s Mexico, according to Everyculture.com is a blend of different cultural influences. It consists of the culture of native Americans, Spanish and the unique Mexican culture, referred to as Cultura Mexicana  or Mexicanidad (Everyculture.com). There are regional sub-cultures in Mexico; Northern, Central and South-Eastern. Another unique cultural group in the country is the altiplano, who developed a unique lifestyle to adapt to the living conditions among the mountains.

Social and family relations in Mexico are very important. Large families are a part of the Mexican culture. The majority of people are Catholic, due to the Spanish influence after the colonization of the country. Faith is important part of everyday life, and churches are often places where communities gather. In Mexican culture, non-verbal communication and intonation has a great importance, however, eye contact is considered as a sign of intimidation. Women pat each other on the right shoulder or forearm, while men shake hands. Mexicans only use each other’s first names when they are invited to do so. When Mexicans invite other people in their house, it is a custom that the guest brings gifts.

People are family-oriented and emotional, protective of their culture and communities. While traditional beliefs of Aztecs that are related to spirits living in objects and polytheism are almost extinct in the country, their influence on the culture and traditions is still visible today.  (CDC Ethnographic Guide: Mexico) The head of the family is the father in traditional Mexican culture (Kwintessential.com), and the role of mothers is considered secondary. “Machismo” (masculinity) (Kwinessential.com) is a part of the Mexican culture. Men are allowed to make remarks about women, but not the other way. Men focus on maintaining their strong masculine image.

Extended family is important, and family members feel like it is their responsibility to protect and help others who are their relatives. This can be manifested in helping to get a job or financing a larger investment, such as a house or a business.

There are more than 100 native languages in Mexico, but the official language is Spanish. Literacy rates have risen in the past few decades, due to education programs introduced by the government.

In Mexico, there is a great level of social stratification (Everyculture.com). The unequal distribution of wealth means that there are great differences in different social classes’ living conditions and incomes. In 1998, according to Everyculture.com, “the top 20 percent of income earners accounted for 55 percent of Mexico’s income, while an estimated 27 percent of the population was living below the poverty line”. This division between the poor and the rich, alongside with the small size of the middle class indicates that there is a great level of social injustice present in Mexico. Poverty is a problem, especially in the rural areas of the South.

The Mexican society is based on hierarchies. Mexicans emphasize hierarchy in families, businesses and the society as well. This also implies that they respect authority more than Western cultures do. In the cultural context, Mexicans can navigate through the society and economy by getting to know who is in charge. On the political field, this also indicates a great respect for leaders. Breaking the chain of hierarchy is considered to be wrong.

Comparison of the Culture of Mexico and the United States of America

America is based on freedom of speech, respect of diversity and individualism. Mexico is a less democratic society, but the country’s people are proud of their culture, origins and traditions. There is a much greater natural cohesion in the Mexican nation than the American. This is because the history of the two countries is different. America was founded by immigrants, and the culture of native people got neglected, diminished. On the other hand, Mexican native traditions still influence the customs of the country.

According to Kras, there are various differences between America and Mexico on the traditional, cultural and economic levels. While in Mexico family comes first, in the USA family usually comes after career and work. For most Americans, the first priority is to create a secure financial background before they would have children. The perception of children is also different in the two countries: while in Mexico they are supposed to be sheltered and celebrated, American parents are trying to bring them up to be independent. Mexican mothers are supposed to have a passive, nurturing role in the family and are expected to stay home, in America, most mothers have two roles: work and family commitments need to be balanced.

Regarding to values and religion, Mexicans believe that God’s will is the only thing that determines the outcome of their plans, while Americans believe in self-determination and the power of will. They have a view that every man is the master of their own life. The strength of entrepreneurial spirit in America is not influenced by fix morals and norms.

Nationality is a strong aspect of the Mexican society. Their pride in their traditions and ancestors is visible throughout the country, especially during national holidays. As a contrast, the USA is a patriotic country but is not proud of the traditions and origins, but what the founders and leaders achieved: the American way of life. Americans also assume that everyone shares their values based on wealth, comfort and prosperity.

The importance of position is great in Mexico; money is less prominent. Meanwhile, in America, status is manifested by prosperity and wealth. Money is perceived by Americans as a reward for personal achievements.

In order to develop a comparison based on the impact of culture on nations’ attitudes towards military operations, it is also important to understand the political traditions and structures of the two countries.

Democracy and political culture is an important part of the Mexican nation’s identity. Political competition is relevantly new in Mexico, and the democratization process of the Mexican society is a new theme. It has been previously discussed that Mexicans generally accept authority and respect it, therefore, the formation of opposition forces in politics is slow. Democracy is a new idea that today the majority of Mexicans accept as a valuable approach towards politics, and this is the reason why in 1988 a major shift in political forces occurred. Still, Mexico’s democratic culture is less developed than the United States’. Indeed, the United States was founded based on  the principles of independence, freedom and democratic values. Tolerance is the main focus of the American system, while the traditions of the Mexican culture favor obedience and respect for position. It has previously been discussed that hierarchies are valued and respected by Mexicans, while this approach somewhat goes against the principles of democracy.

The differences in the development level of democracy between the two countries also mean that while in America tolerance for different views and cultures is one of the most commonly promoted political ideas, in Mexico, it is less important. Hence, the support of an authoritarian rule in Mexico is much higher than in America. America is intolerant towards authoritarian and despotic leaders, and this has been the reason for several interventions supported by the United States around the world. America did not agree with the methods used by Franco, Stalin, the leaders of the Islamic states, and this disagreement was the basis of the Cold War’s gretest arguments as well between Reagan and Nikita Khrushchev.

While Mexico also fought a war on independence (1914), the fight was over freedom of national authority, not democracy. In America, people came together to build a nation from the bottom up, and the new country had to be created to support both tolerance and democracy. America, on the other hand, is a superpower that grew into one of the most influential countries in world politics on its own merits, and this national pride is based on civic nationalism. Mexican nationalism, on the other hand, is ethnic; based on traditions, common history and culture.

Culture’s Impact on Military Operations.

The history of Mexico shows that nationalism is a strong theme of the culture, therefore, the country would be against any intervention into its domestic affairs. Even in times when demonstrations occur and poverty causes economic problems, the country prefers its independence over help of intervention. There is currently a non-intervention policy in place between the United States and Mexico. The two countries respect each other’s sovereignity and America respects the rights of the country. As the two countries are major international trading partners and embrace a non-intervention norm, it is not likely that any intervention from either side would occur in the near future.

Still, America is affected by several issues originated from Mexico. The Mexican-American border is the main route of drug smuggling cartels, and in order to protect its citizens, the United States needs to make a clear statement about tackling crimes. Collaboration between the two countries to reduce drug crime is advanced. Immigration from Mexico (especially illegal immigration) also creates a burden for international politicians.

According to Guilamo-Lamos, the current international relations initiatives between the two countries are built around security and economic improvement.

In the past America only intervened in other countries’ domestic policies, civil wars and revolutions when it was approved by the majority of the international community (however, UN approval was not always obtained). Further, America tends to engage in military conflicts in ideological level and when there is no diplomatic solution. Another reason why America would engage in a military action is to protect the country from outsider attacks, like 9/11.

While the U.S. Senate would need people’s approval to start a military action or engage in an intervention project, the case is different in Mexico. As it has been stated before, Mexican culture is based on the acceptance of authority. This means that the decisions of leaders are subsequently right and are not to be questioned. While in case America started a war or military operation, anti-war movements would start soon based on the freedom of speech principle built in the Constitution, this would not happen in Mexico. Mexican people would accept authority without questioning.

The main motivation of Mexican people to agree with a military operation would be to protect their families, communities and nation. Their opinion would be largely influenced by ethnic nationalist feelings; their right to sovereignty and culture. Any invasion into the culture by other countries would trigger negative feelings towards the intervening state. While many Mexicans feel that the movement towards democracy is a positive development of recent years, globalization imposes threat on the unique culture and traditions of Mexico.

In America, the main motivations of the society to agree with a military action would be to protect the “country built together” and the values of the American nation. It has also been noted previously that while Mexican culture is built around family values and communities, America is a highly materialized culture. Gaining more power for the civic nation, more economic advantages would be perceived as a common goal of America. Still, due to the recent military actions in the Middle East where America failed to achieve its goals and mission, as well as the failure of the Vietnam War and the increased cost of wars, it is likely that American people would be less willing to agree with intervention than in the first half of the 20^th Century. The threat of the Cold War is still a vivid memory of many people, and several citizens share the view that a Third World War would result in America’s devastation.

America, according to Wiarda and Collins (3) has been engaging in a pro-democratic international policy in Latin America. It is actively supporting nations to develop democracy and freedom. The United States has a large army, but – to the society’s pressure in the 20^th Century – it engages mainly in defense operations. While the President can initiate military action, it needs to be approved by the Congress. In Mexico, however, military has a limited role in times of peace, and is not influenced by politics.

Huntington, however, draws up a new pattern of conflict, which, by itself is alarming and worth an analysis. According to the author, future conflicts are going to be built on the “Clash of Civilizations”. This statement indicates that wars are likely to be fought on the ideological level. Nations will fight to preserve their civilization identity. Therefore, the most likely scenario is that increased influence of globalization and its impact in societies, cultures would result in a military conflict. Still, since the Free Trade agreement of the United States and Latin America, both countries had to compromise. And this decision of making allowances to each other indicate that it is not likely that there is going to be a military conflict. First, because in the U.S. currently those opposing military conflict are in majority, secondly because the leaders of Mexico realize that they need to introduce democratic reforms to gain advantage of U.S trade agreements for their countries. Leaders are not likely to support military action, and their authority is strong in Mexican culture.

Works Cited

“Countries and Their Cultures. Mexico.” Everyculture.com. n.d. Web.

“CDC Ethnographic Guide: Mexico” n.d. Web.

“Mexico – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette” http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/ n.d. Web.

Guilamo-Lamos, V. “The U.S. and Mexico Have Much to Learn from Each Other”. Huffington Post. 2013. Web.

Kras, E.  “Management in Two Cultures – Bridging the gap between US and Mexico” 1996-  2006. Web.

Wiarda, H, and Collins, H. “Constitutional Coups? Military interventions in Latin America” 2011. Web.