"Neoliberalism, as a global system, aims to destroy all barriers to the flow of capital and the exploitation of labor. For the indigenous peoples of Chiapas, the entry into force of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is the final blow, a death sentence that strips us of our communal lands (ejidos) and integrates our resources into a global market that values profit over human survival. We resist this globalization because it is not an exchange between equals, but a new form of conquest that erases our cultures, impoverishes our communities, and robs us of our sovereignty."
— Communiqué from the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN), Mexico, 1994
Which of the following developments in the late twentieth century most directly contributed to the protest and resistance described in the passage?
- The spread of free-market economic policies and regional trade agreements that disrupted traditional socioeconomic structures.Answer
- BThe complete homogenization of global cultures under Western models, which eliminated all local forms of cultural resistance.
- CThe re-establishment of formal, direct colonial administration by North American powers over Southern Mexico.
- DThe rapid introduction of sustainable organic farming techniques promoted by the Green Revolution.