Teachers and the Neoliberal Legacy
Also in this edition: 2026 World Cup. Hopeful experiences in agriculture. Cuba receives the sixth shipment of humanitarian aid from Mexico and Belize. Social movements and a progressive government.
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Reclaiming the Future
The democratic teachers movement has been on the front lines against neoliberalism for four decades, and today the legacy of that defeated national project continues to have consequences that are intolerable for the teachers. Once again, their resistance is being expressed in Mexico’s streets now as the World Cup gets underway, with thousands of members of the CNTE (National Coordinator of Education Workers) on strike, demanding better retirement benefits and a 100 percent salary increase. Claudia Sheinbaum’s government has offered a series of changes to the system, but reiterates that after 40 years of neoliberalism, the state lacks the funds necessary to meet the democratic teachers’ demands.
The first World Cup match in Mexico was played on Thursday amid numerous protests but without major incidents. Nonetheless, tensions remain high, and the teachers’ mobilization across much of the country has become one of the most difficult social challenges facing Sheinbaum’s anti-neoliberal government.
The teachers’ main demand is the repeal of a 2007 law that replaced a public pension system—one that guaranteed a specific benefit amount—with a system of individual retirement accounts managed primarily by private pension fund administrators (AFOREs). According to teachers, the current system leaves them with only about 30 percent of the retirement income they deserve. In fact, this central demand is not new: educators have been mobilizing against the 2007 pension law for more than 18 years and have filed over two million legal challenges.
Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez stated during negotiations that returning to the old solidarity-based pension system is not feasible, as it would cost the equivalent of 20 percent of GDP. However, she proposed creating a specialized pension insurance agency and strengthening the National Pension Fund for State Workers. Rodríguez also said the government would fulfill another teacher demand by eliminating the Unit of the System for Teacher Careers. Additionally, the government noted that during the Fourth Transformation, teachers have regained purchasing power and more than 1.2 million educators have received permanent appointments.
The CNTE continues to insist on direct dialogue with the president. “The situation is complicated,” writes Julio Hernández López in his Astillero column. “As a presidential candidate, Claudia Sheinbaum promised the CNTE she would meet their demand to abolish retirement and pension rules that teachers consider harmful. As president, she now says there are no budgetary conditions to fulfill that promise.”
It is worth remembering that Mexico is one of the OECD countries with the lowest teacher salaries. In 2023, teachers’ wages were 23 percent below the OECD average. The average monthly teacher pension is approximately 7,000 pesos.
The teachers’ mobilization has heightened tensions with local and federal authorities, who blocked the establishment of a protest encampment in the Zócalo—a space reserved for FIFA’s Fan Fest. This has led to accusations of repression, including the serious injury of one teacher. The government, however, has also criticized what it describes as acts of provocation by demonstrators. President Sheinbaum condemned such actions as violence that no longer stem solely from legitimate demands but instead form part of a strategy to project an image of chaos and instability in Mexico. She called for all demonstrations to remain peaceful and emphasized that although provocateurs seek a violent response, her government will never repress protesters. In an editorial, La Jornada warned that “the temptation to take advantage of the moment and push demands in tandem with the far right could carry an enormous cost in terms of popular support and solidarity for their causes.”
At its core, the dispute is the result of 40 years of neoliberalism. The stripping of public assets through the privatizations of the 1990s and the pension reforms of 2007 laid the groundwork for today’s crisis. “While banks and pension fund administrators have earned billions in profits, teachers and public servants often retire with miserable pensions,” writes Luis Hernández Navarro. “The government budget falls short because the wealthy do not pay enough taxes. What is needed is a tax reform that places a greater burden on capital.”
The Quote:
“Rarely does a fan say, ‘My club plays today’. Rather, it’s: ‘Today we play.’”
—Eduardo Galeano
In Case You Missed It
◻️ The 2026 World Cup. The World Cup opened with celebrations of a victory by the Mexican national team in the first contest against South Africa, but there is still a long road to the final. Follow matches and results through La Jornada’s app and website. Also check out the special supplement “A Ball in the Head,” covering fan enthusiasm, commercial aspects of the tournament, and some of its broader consequences.
◻️ Living Territories. La Jornada del Campo reports on a variety of agricultural initiatives that paint a hopeful picture of communities choosing to build their own futures through responsible management of their resources. One example is the Bonanza agroforestry ejido in Chiapas, where, after the Zapatista uprising, a group of families obtained funding through a carbon-credit program, planted trees, and has now realized their dream of growing coffee beneath the shade of the trees. Another is the community of San Juan Atzingo in the State of Mexico, where residents organize to protect their forest “with tooth and nail,” establishing a tree nursery, a micro-tourism enterprise, and an association of carpenters.
◻️ Social movements and a progressive government. Indigenous communities, urban popular movements, environmental activists, water defenders, mothers searching for missing relatives, and democratic teachers—some of whom are using the World Cup to increase visibility for their demands—are legitimate expressions of social activism, writes Luis Hernández Navarro. They uphold a basic principle: “No matter who governs, rights must be defended.” None of these movements, he argues, are “playing into the hands of U.S. imperialism or reactionary forces.” He warns that “attempting to criminalize them instead of addressing their demands is the wrong path.” Julio Hernández similarly criticizes some authorities for employing “stigmatization, language reminiscent of the Díaz Ordaz era, and rhetorical maneuvers intended to delegitimize and neutralize social movements.”
◻️ Cuba: sixth shipment of humanitarian aid. On June 7, a humanitarian solidarity ship from Mexico and Belize arrived in Cuba. Cuba’s president reported that the vessel carried 1,700 tons of food and supplies and expressed gratitude for the efforts of “both governments, solidarity groups, Cubans living in those sister nations, and La Jornada.”
◻️ Corruption surges under Trump. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has paid more than $50 million in fines related to money laundering violations. In May, President Donald Trump endorsed a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in Texas who had been reported to the FBI by members of his own staff. These developments come in addition to the 22 Trump-branded real estate projects currently underway worldwide, many involving partners previously accused of environmental contamination, regulatory violations, or labor-rights abuses.
◻️ Elena Poniatowska on the International Forum of Oral Storytellers. For more than 35 years, the International Forum of Oral Storytellers (FINO), led by Mexican Armando Trejo and Panamanian Rubén Corbet, has worked to preserve the art of the spoken word through stories, myths, legends, and poetry. “Oral storytelling is not the work of a lone individual standing before a community,” says Trejo, “but a collective form of communication, as practiced by shamans, storytellers, peasants, minstrels, troubadours, acrobats, and even the peddlers who sell miraculous ointments, tonics, and liniments.
◻️ Marjane Satrapi dies “of sadness” Filmmaker and author Marjane Satrapi, best known for Persepolis, has passed away. Her work is celebrated for its freshness, commitment, and humanism.
📚 What We Are Reading
An excerpt from The Soccer War by Ryszard Kapuściński
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Edited by David Brooks and Jim Cason in the United States, Tania Molina Ramírez in Mexico City, of La Jornada, and Elizabeth Coll in Tokyo, under the direction of Carmen Lira Saade and Guillermina Álvarez. More information.