Vicente Lombardo Toledano

Vicente Lombardo Toledano was a prominent Mexican labor leader and philosopher of the 20th century. He was born in Teziutlán, Puebla, to a middle-class family of Sephardic Jewish descent. He studied law and philosophy at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), where he became part of an intellectual group known as the Seven Sages of Mexico. He was involved in various political and social movements, such as the Mexican Revolution, the Cristero War, and the Cardenista reforms. He founded the Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM) in 1936, the largest and most influential labor federation in Mexico, which supported the ruling party of President Lázaro Cárdenas. He also founded the Popular Socialist Party (PPS) in 1948, a Marxist-Leninist party that advocated for social justice and national sovereignty. He was a prolific writer and speaker, who published several books and articles on topics such as history, economics, sociology, and philosophy. He was influenced by Karl Marx, José Martí, José Carlos Mariátegui, and José Vasconcelos, among others. He died in Mexico City in 1968, at the age of 74. He is regarded as one of the most important figures of Mexican Marxism and socialism.