The University Debate Between Antonio Caso and Vicente Lombardo Toledano (1933)
The debate between Antonio Caso and Vicente Lombardo Toledano was political, philosophical, and public. To decide whether to reform public education, particularly undergraduate education, Caso and Lombardo Toledano argued over whether “[t]he courses that constitute the study plan for the Bachelor degree will obey the principle of essential identity in regards to the different phenomena of the Universe and will culminate with the teaching of philosophy based on nature.” Caso argued that despite violating the autonomy of the University and academic freedom, protected under the Constitution, the education reform proposed by the Second Commission was based on a false philosophical thesis: historical materialism. Since Caso and Lombardo Toledano agree that University is defined as a “cultural community,” much of the debate is focused on the nature of community, culture, history, and ethics.