“How can we talk about Mexico being a democracy if you don't have the basic right to walk around freely secured in all the country, for example, and also to vote securely?…. How can you report on news and how can we have free speech in a country where journalists are killed every day?”

Revisit this conversation from Aug 2022 about What Democracy Looks Like in Mexico, with Brenda Lopez and David Palma. My guests describe the challenge to democracy posed by drug cartels that pour money into neglected local communities while also meting out brutal violence. Also the difference between Federalism in the US versus Mexico, and questions about immigration that seem even more relevant in 2024.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country. Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠!