206 Latin American populism Latin American populism Populist movements flourished in many Latin American nations from roughly 1920 until the mid-1960s Populist regimes took a variety of forms in diverse national contexts, even within Latin America Variations within populism were particularly pronounced because populist movements were based on ad hoc responses to circumstances rather than on any coherent or consistent ideology Nevertheless, populist movements within Latin America did share several defining features Overwhelmingly urban based, Latin American populist movements were characterized by multiclass, nonrevolutionary coalitions that aimed at the development of domestic industry, the redress of popular grievances, and the peaceful integration of the urban masses into a political arena hitherto controlled almost exclusively by elites Populism in the Latin context had preconditions of both rapid urbanization and the rise of welfare states, both of which contributed to new understandings of the state’s role in addressing social issues In most cases the leaders of populist movements were charismatic figures who employed a personalist style of leadership to garner support Examples of populist leaders include Juan Domingo Perón in Argentina, Getúlio Vargas in Brazil, Lázaro Cárdenas in Mexico, Jorge Eliécer Gaitán in Colombia, Víctor Rẳl Haya de la Torre in Peru, and José María Velasco Ibarra in Ecuador Unlike its rural counterpart in North America, populism in the Latin American context was predominantly urban based Occasionally, as was the case in Peru, plantation workers might be included in the movement if they worked in close proximity to the towns Populism was largely a reaction to the phenomenal growth of cities between 1880 and 1930 and the social dislocation that resulted from this so-called metropolitan revolution Although these factors were not sufficient to ensure a populist response, they did create an environment favorable to the proliferation of populist movements Significant agrarian reforms occured in Mexico under the presidency of Lázaro Cárdenas (1934–40) Cárdenas’s agrarian policies were atypical of populist leaders, however; much more typical was his support for organized industrial labor in Mexico’s cities The meteoric rise to power of Argentinian populist leader Juan D Perón was due in large part to the charisma of Péron and his second wife, Eva Duarte de Perón, both of whom made extensive personal contact with workers throughout Argentina Populist leaders frequently took advantage of advances in media technology in order to deliver their message to the popu- lace Pedro Ernesto, mayor of Rio de Janeiro and leader of Brazil’s first populist movement, was among the first to explore the political potential of the radio as a means of mobilizing large segments of the population, as was Jorge Eliécer Gaitán in Colombia In addition to making use of the airwaves to reach his followers, Gaitán also produced his own newspaper In later years the Brazilian Department of Press and Publicity became a major source of propaganda on behalf of Getúlio Vargas, who embraced populist politics in the final decade of his career José María Velasco Ibarra, five-time president of Ecuador, used various forms of propaganda to project a populist image throughout his lengthy career SOCIAL BASE Another defining characteristic of Latin American populism was its multiclass social base Although many of the movement’s objectives appealed primarily to the working classes, supporters were recruited from all levels of society Unlike socialism, which aimed at the overthrow of the bourgeoisie, populism sought the political integration of the masses without fundamental change to the social structure Particularly in the early years of populism, known as the reformist or consensual era, members of the middle and elite classes often supported populist movements as an effective means to curb lowerclass agitation In many cases the middle classes stood to benefit materially from populist reform as well The expansion of social services, for example, created thousands of professional jobs, while policies aimed at promoting industrial growth appealed to a broad spectrum of society Peru’s Aprista movement, founded by Haya de la Torre in 1924, exemplifies the type of multiclass coalition that characterized Latin American populism Populism became especially prevalent in Latin America during the 1930s and 1940s, in the wake of the stock market crash and the global Great Depression that followed The virtual collapse of several Latin American export economies during the Great Depression prompted policy makers to impose high tariffs and consider methods of diversifying the Latin American economy, thus reducing dependence on the international market Although populism followed no consistent ideology, Latin American populist movements tended to include the expansion of state activism in order to promote accelerated industrialization Several populist leaders, including Perón in Argentina and Vargas in Brazil, established state-owned enterprises in areas formally controlled by the private sector In the case of Argentina, the Fabricaciones Militares was founded in 1943