Melchor Ocampo was a liberal politician, intellectual, and reformer during the era of Benito Juárez. He supported the separation of church and state and helped shape the liberal reforms that transformed Mexican political life in the nineteenth century.

Ocampo is remembered as one of the important figures of the Reform period. For citizenship learners, he helps explain the struggle between conservative and liberal visions of Mexico and the creation of a more secular republican state.