Kidnapped, Jailed, Vilified

In 1919, rebels seeking to discredit President Carranza kidnapped Jenkins, but once his friends had paid the ransom he found himself jailed for having concocted the episode, a move that outraged hawkish US politicians and almost provoked an armed intervention. As Carranza looked for a successor he might manipulate as his puppet, rebels abducted Jenkins from his mill, targeting him for his wealth and his status as US consular agent. After his release and subsequent jailing, Senator Albert Fall and Secretary of State Robert Lansing tried to use the “insult” as a final-straw pretext for an invasion; the Revolution had seen loss to American life and property and multiple kidnappings. But the plan failed when Carranza had Jenkins released. The affair gave birth to a Machiavellian Jenkins “Black Legend” and marked an evolution in gringophobia, whereby US businessmen rather than politicians were perceived as Mexico’s chief exterior threat.