Source
“It is clearly my duty to lay before you, very fully and without reservation, the facts concerning our present relations with the Republic of Mexico. The deplorable posture of affairs in Mexico I need not describe, but I deem it my duty to speak very frankly of what this Government has done and should seek to do in fulfillment of it obligation to Mexico herself, as a friend and neighbor, and to American citizens whose lives and vital interests are daily affected by the distressing conditions which now obtain beyond our southern border.
Those condition touch us very nearly. Not merely because they lie at our very door. That of course makes us more vividly and more constantly conscious of them, and every instinct of neighborly interest and sympathy is aroused and quickened by them; but that is only one element in the determination of our duty. We are glad to call ourselves the friends of Mexico, and we shall, I hope, have many an occasion, in happier times as well as in these days of trouble and confusion, to show that our friendship is genuine and disinterested, capable of sacrifice and every generous manifestation. The peace, prosperity, and contentment of Mexico mean more, much more, to us than merely an enlarged field for our commerce and enterprise. They mean an enlargement of the field of self-government and the realization of the hopes and rights of a nation with whose best aspirations, so long suppressed and disappointed, we deeply sympathize. We shall yet prove to the Mexican people that we know how to serve them without first thinking how we shall serve ourselves.”
Introduction
On August 27, 1913 President Woodrow Wilson addressed a joint session of congress on the state of Mexico. This speech has the intention to acknowledge that the U.S. must put Mexico’s needs ahead of just their own. Woodrow Wilson states that the United States has a duty to serve Mexico in any way that they can for the benefit of Mexico but also for the benefit of United States’ citizens. Woodrow Wilson’s motivation for addressing Mexico and the need for the U.S. to care for Mexico is because he predicted that trade would be coming to Latin America and wanted the U.S. to be a part of that. Woodrow Wilson does voice some concern that Mexico is unable to foster peace by itself.
The idea that U.S. involvement is the only way Latin American countries can be successful is seen in many cases. It is seen in the U.S.’s encroachment of Puerto Rico, Cuba and now Mexico. Ever since the Monroe Doctrine the U.S. has taken on the “caregiving” role even when they are not asked for intervention. In the case of Mexico Wilson expresses that he doubts Mexico can become a peaceful, organized, and strong enough country to be able to welcome the impending trade boom without the U.S.’s involvement. Woodrow’s goals for U.S. involvement are to assist Mexico in forming a strong, well-respected government in Mexico City, end the violence throughout the country, and to hold an election for the president of Mexico. All of these goals, Woodrow says, are because the U.S. truly sees Mexico as a friend and does not want to stand by as Mexico struggles to become a successful country.
Citation
Woodrow Wilson, Address to a Joint Session of Congress on Mexican Affairs Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/206411