Nazism in Mexico (Spanish:Nazismo) began in the 1930s, beforeWorld War II, when theNazi Party conductedpolitical propaganda in the country to attractmilitants, whetherGerman immigrants or Mexicannationalists who sympathized with Nazi ideals.[1]
WhenAdolf Hitler becamechancellor of Germany in 1933, thousands ofJews began to fear persecution due to theantisemitic rhetoric of theThird Reich and the popularity of Hitler's famous book,Mein Kampf. Thus, German Jews emigrated to Mexico via a ship bound for thePort of Veracruz. The port authority began accepting Jewish refugees as early as 1937, albeit unofficially, due to the controversial nature of the Jewish question and the rising antisemitism in the politics ofCaribbean countries.[2]
However, it was during this period in the 1930s that Nazism began to gain followers in the country. The most notable example was theRevolutionary Mexicanist Action (ARM), colloquially known as the "Gold Shirts," which played an important role inNazi propaganda and sought the deportation of the Jewish people and called for a boycott of their businesses.[3] Although it was known that the organization had the support of the Mexican bourgeoisie, little was known that the Nazi Party itself also financed them.[4]
In 1936, one night the Gold Shirts raided Jewish businesses, destroying them and attacking their owners. The protests in response were immediate, highlighting those of the US embassy, theMexican Communist Party and theInternational Red Aid. The general public described the event as a pogrom.
The year 1942 would mark a turning point in Mexican history. On May 13, the government issued adeclaration of war againstGermany,Italy, andJapan through theCongress of the Union after two oil tankers were sunk by Nazi submarines. From then on, Mexican sympathy for theAxis countries gradually waned; the country sent 300 soldiers from201st Fighter Squadron to thePhilippines to liberate the country from Japanese occupation, and many more volunteered for Allied troops to fight the Germans and Italians inEurope.[5]
The 21st century saw the rise ofneo-Nazism in Mexico,[6] particularly on internet forums and blogs, where they repeat the anti-Semitic claims of Anglo-American or European neo-Nazis. Mexican neo-Nazis are divided intowhites andmestizos, who are derogatorily referred to as "morenazis."[7]
In the 2010s and 2020s, there have been cases of pro-Nazi rock bands holding clandestine concerts in major Mexican cities, many of which openly displayed associated symbols such as theswastika or Hitler's cult of personality.[8][9] According toMetal-Archives, at least 28 neo-Nazi black metal bands have been identified in the country, 21 of which are active.[10]
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