Riding with the Revolution

“This is a splendidly written and researched study of the left-wing actors who expressed their solidarity with the Mexican Revolution during its first decade and a half. Entertainingly written, this book is both a history of the Revolution itself and an exploration of what attracted the attention of US activists who crossed the US-Mexican border to engage with the goals of Latin America’s first social revolution. An entertaining read for scholars interested in cross-border-solidarity and US-Mexican relations.” – Barry Carr, Emeritus Professor Latin American Studies and History, La Trobe University and Fellow, Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia

“In a detailed, rich and scholarly but always interesting fashion, Dan La Botz looks at a wide range of U.S. political forces ranging from the conservative labor AFL leadership to antiwar activists opposed to World War I, Communists, the IWW and anarchists who supported major Mexican revolutionary leaders such as Francisco Madero, Francisco ‘Pancho’ Villa, Emiliano Zapata, Ricardo Flores Magón and their followers. A must read for those interested in Mexican and U.S. labor and left history.” – Samuel Farber, author of The Politics of Che Guevara: Theory and Practice

“When the transnational and international history of labour movements have vanished from the bookshops´ shelves, Dan La Botz provides us with a vivacious narrative of the Mexican Revolution to learn about and to enjoy.” – Daniela Spenser, author of Stumbling its Way through Mexico: The Early Years of the Communist International

“Riding with the Revolution is an unmatched panoramic study of the revolutionary process in Mexico in the first decades of the twentieth century. La Botz leads us through a multidimensional analysis of the politics, movements, participants, and debates that shaped the trajectory and outcomes of one of the great social revolutions of the last century. Approaching history through a transnational and international lens, we learn how US radicals and revolutionaries observed, participated in, and contributed to the events unfolding south of the border; as well as how they opposed the counter-revolutionary machinations and interventionism of their own government. La Botz meticulously documents and describes the proceedings in such precise language and illuminating insight that the reader can almost feel the pounding heartbeat of the period—one fired by the hopes of people trying to create a new world. Riding with the Revolution is a must read for anyone who wants to understand the class character, political complexities, and international significance of the Mexican Revolution. It is also essential reading for those who want to learn from the revolutions and revolutionaries of the past, as we continue to grapple with the question of how to change a world in crisis.” –Justin Akers Chacón, author of Radicals in the Barrio: Magonistas, Socialists, Wobblies, and Communists in the Mexican-American Working Class