Discussions
casey7677
Dis1Reply.docxMondayAug 10 at 8:21pm
As private corporations increased in size, number, and power in the late twentieth century, the corrupt Mexican government failed to protect indigenous and reserved lands from exploitation. Deforestation and fossil fuel capitalization plagued much of the Chiapas region, hurting the land and its indigenous communities. The Zapatista Movement was an unprecedented, grassroots movement formed in response to these environmental and human rights injustices. The Zapatistas were against the Mexican government on a political and institutional level. They were disillusioned with the government’s single-party control, election corruption and decreasing control over international affairs. The Army originally formed to protect and advocate for the indigenous groups of the Lacandon Community, but eventually expanded to fight for many more indigenous peoples. The Zapatista’s first armed rebellion on January 1st, 1994, sparked three years of political turmoil about the government’s involvement in indigenous communities.
There is no doubt that the rise of new technology in the 1990’s played a significant role in the reach of the Zapatista movement. The rebellion caught global attention during its military attacks, and surely gained awareness and support in Mexico through communication technology. Websites were created with information about the Zapatista movement and its endeavors. The Zapatistas and the Mexican government came to an agreement for Constitutional and systemic changes for local indigenous autonomy. Although the government did not follow through, the ideas laid out by this agreement were kept alive and fought for domestically and internationally, largely thanks to connections made via the internet. Today, the Mexican Congress is no longer controlled by the ruling Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), one of the lasting effects of the movement. The Zapatista rebellion was bold in its rejection of the Mexican government on a systemic level, and largely unprecedented in its advocacy for indigenous peoples in Mexico. The initiative regenerated the revolutionary spirit in Mexico that had not been seen since the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1940.
SundayAug 9 at 9:25pm
In 1994, the Zapatista's, made up mainly of indigenous and the poor, set off on a revolution that changed the course of rebellions and revolutions. During this rebellion, is when Mexico saw a rise in Non-Government Organization's (NGO's). An example is the Zapatista National Liberation Army. These NGO's along with the normal civilians of Mexico created a movement that defined the rest of history. The point in emphasizing this twice is to pinpoint the importance of this movement. The difference between this movement from one's past was the internet. The internet created a place for information to expand and get out to the world. This overload of information benefitted the Zapatistas. They had begun "to craft their missives and adapt their public interventions as they have grown to better understand the effectiveness of the Internet in making their voices heard"(libcom). In having the Internet allow them to have a voice, Mexico experienced a ripple. The culture of Mexico went from the people remaining unheard, to them having every country in the world hear their pain.
An example is something more recent. When the 47 people went missing in Ayotzinapa, the Internet went crazy over this. There were rallies, protests, demands, but above all, a place for voices to be heard. This is something that carried on to how Mexico shifted with their politics. They felt that the people were empowered and that their companionship wouldn't allow them to run Mexico as they had before. The Zapatista movement wanted demands politically that Mexico had to obey. When the world is listening and the voices of the unheard are heard, Mexico has no choice but to consider this change. The Zapatista's were calling "for the democratization of democracy, based on its critique of the one-party system in Mexico and its demands for electoral reform"(libcom). What this led to what more of a sympathetic chord across the world. The Zapitasta's wanted more and they were demanding it and with the Internet, they knew they would have their way if they continued to persist. Even though the battle still isn't complete, the Zapatistas along with the voiceless, now have their voices heard culturally and politically.
