We Arrived

June 20, 2021

It was 06:59am—Mexico time—on June 20, 2021, when, hazy on the horizon, the Iberian Peninsula became visible from La Montaña. At 09:14:45am, the ship anchored in the Baiona or Bayona Bay, Galicia, Spanish State, Europe. From there, the geography of Portugal is just a stone’s throw away, and a bit to the northeast Vigo is visible. Everyone is healthy. Due to paperwork and other matters, La Montaña and the 421st Squadron will remain here until their tentative disembarkation on Tuesday the 22nd at 17:00—Vigo time and date. The Spanish Civil Guard boarded the ship, took down the crew’s and passenger’s information, checked passports, and carried out a routine check. All is well. Weather conditions: cloudy, light but frequent rain, 15 degrees Celsius.

Shortly after, several sailboats carrying compas from rebellious Europe approached to welcome the ship… or to check if the rumors that run through barrios, mountains, and countryside across the world were true: “the Zapatistas have invaded Europe.”

On land, at the foot of what looks like a lighthouse, another group was shouting something like, “We surrender!”… Nah, just kidding. They were shouting “Long Live Zapata,” “Welcome!” and… well that one is hard to hear. They hold banners and posters. As far as the ship’s passengers can see, there are no obscene signs, which might indicate that we have not been disowned… yet. Some poor disoriented soul carries a sign that reads: “The Rebellious Popcorn Diner. Galician Stew, Idem and Sardine Empanadas. Special discounts for invaders, beetles and cat-dogs” Another sign reads, “Get me out of here!” The most prudent ones use their banners as umbrellas.

The European sky cries, moved. Its tears can’t be distinguished from the ones that moisten the cheeks—weathered by sun, sea, anguish and adrenaline—of the intrepid 421st Squadron. In their step, their gaze, and their heartbeats, the Mayan people—the legend will say—crossed the Atlantic in 50 days and nights, in their long and turbulent journey for life.

It’s cold outside, but inside, in the geography of the heart, something warms the soul. In the mountains of the Mexican southeast, the sun smiles and the first notes of a cumbia emerge joyfully from the sound system.

Of course, the disembarkation, the arrival of the aerial delegation, the organization of the agenda, the meetings, and the celebration of the word are still to be done.

In other words, we’ve only just begun.

SupGaleano
June, 2021

Music: La Cumbia del Sapito – Alfredo y sus Teclados

Calamidad Zapatista

 The story of the encounter between SupGaleano and Calamidad [Calamity], including the History of Popcorn and, in the sports section, the first world soccer match, as well as other unhappy (for the Sup) events

Headnotes (just to annoy the footnotes):

(1) The first version of this story was read aloud in the Second Puy ta Cuxlejaltic Film Festival, celebrated in the Caracol of Tulan Kaw in December 2019. The text was unpublished until now. This version maintains the original text and adds some details that may lead some readers to despair, accustomed as they might be to short readings with few ideas. You may detect some spoilers related to what is now known as the “Journey for Life.” Don’t worry though, it often happens that Zapatismo announces things that have not yet happened. This Zapatista irresponsibility is now legendary, so stop complaining.

(2) Unfortunately, this text doesn’t have the special effects that were used in the aforementioned caracol and that earned SupGaleano seven nominations for the “Cardboard Popcorn Kernel,” the highest prize for whomever consumes the most bowls of popcorn drenched in hot sauce without resorting to antacids, which falls in the award category of “with or without a film.”

(3) Warning: The following accounts may contain images that offend those lacking in imagination, intelligence, and other things equally devalued under modernity. It is not recommended for reading by adults over 21, unless supervised by children under 12. What?! Are you going to read on despite this serious warning? Well there you are, nobody has any principles anymore.

(4) This account is based on real events. Names have been maintained to clarify the responsible parties before the Good Government Council’s Justice Commission… What? Yes, you can doubt the truth of what is recounted here, but…didn’t you also doubt that the zapatones would invade Europe? That’s what I thought. All the beings described herein actually exist. If anyone thinks this isn’t possible, that’s not the fault of reality but rather lack of imagination.

(5) Huh? No, I’m not scolding you. As they say, I’m giving you the context for what is and what follows…

-*-

This is the story of a little Zapatista girl who no one loved because she was, and is, different, even among those who are different.

(Continuar leyendo…)

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Los y las integrantes del Colectivo “Llegó la Hora de los Pueblos” hemos recibido y leído con mucha indignación y preocupación el comunicado de la Comisión Sexta Zapatista, fechado el 11 de junio del 2021, en el que se describen las actitudes y prácticas racistas y discriminatorias con las que se ha negado a compañeros y compañeras zapatistas el derecho a un pasaporte mexicano, a pesar de cumplir con los requisitos correspondientes.

Lo descrito en el comunicado: el trato irrespetuoso, el lenguaje racista, la extranjerización y negación de su ciudadanía, la solicitud arbitraria de requisitos que no se solicitan a otros ciudadanos, revelan, en suma, la violencia burocrática y un racismo institucionalizado que se reproducen cotidianamente en las estructuras estatales.

 A pesar de las reformas constitucionales en torno a los derechos indígenas y de los múltiples compromisos internacionales que se han firmado en la materia, se ha documentado ampliamente que el racismo en el trato que recibieron los y las compañeras zapatistas, es un problema estructural en los sistemas de justicia, salud y educación, y en múltiples espacios estatales donde la población indígena, afrodescendiente, campesina y los pobres racializados, son tratados como ciudadanos de tercera, negándoseles sus derechos fundamentales. Este racismo institucional se ha denunciado también en la expedición de otros documentos oficiales, como las actas de nacimiento, credenciales del INE, especialmente en regiones indígenas y afromexicanas.

En esta dirección, demandamos a la Secretaría de Gobernación que cese la demora y el bloqueo de múltiples actas de nacimiento al exigir igualmente requisitos indebidos que están impidiendo la tramitación del pasaporte.

En el caso específico que aquí denunciamos, los burócratas de la Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE), han extralimitado sus atribuciones, actuando como agentes migratorios que tratan de controlar la salida de ciudadanos mexicanos negando el derecho al pasaporte. Si bien la SRE establece en su página, que los únicos requisitos para obtener dicho documento, son la acreditación de la nacionalidad mexicana (con acta de nacimiento), fotografía y pago correspondiente (https://www.gob.mx/tramites/ficha/pasaporte-ordinario-para-personas-mayores-de-edad/SRE112) a los y las solicitantes zapatistas se les han exigido requisitos innecesarios como certificados de estudios, cartas de validación de sus municipios, hasta demostrar lo que los funcionarios consideran “conocimientos generales” sobre México, con prácticas racistas que los agentes migratorios aplican a la población centroamericana en nuestras fronteras.

El día de hoy 15 de junio, desde presidencia se informó que se tomarían las medidas necesarias “para aclarar esta situación, pero si se cometió un error se va a resolver”. Estaremos atentos y vigilando la pronta solución al problema de la emisión de pasaportes. Sin embargo, recalcamos que no se trata de casos aislados, y que el problema de fondo no se resuelve exclusivamente sancionando a los funcionarios de la SRE. Consideramos que la visibilización de estos casos de las y los compañeros zapatistas, debe servir para hacer una denuncia más amplia respecto a los patrones racistas que sustentan el aparato burocrático del Estado mexicano.

Aprovechamos para manifestar públicamente nuestro apoyo a estos “Viajeros por la vida”, cuya travesía busca articular esfuerzos y trascender fronteras en las luchas contra el racismo y las políticas de muerte.

Colectivo de apoyo al EZLN, CNI CIG Llegó la Hora de los Pueblos

The Zapatista Passport
(See you soon, Portugal; Galicia, here we come).

June of 2021.

On June 12^th, 2021, the 421^st Squadron, as well as the rest of the passengers and crew, had their passports stamped for legal entry into the space or zone known as Schengen and disembarked in Horta, Azores Islands, Portugal, Europe. Gracefully and without losing their composure (so to speak), they debarked from La Montaña [the Mountain]. As it should be, there was a frenzy of dancing, photos, and feasting. Marijose discovered an old prophecy that predicted their arrival. And they played that so-called “game” of the kind where “last one off pays for the food” (Diego Osorno lost). There was a toast to life, of course.

-*-

At 9:17:45am on June 14^th of the current year, La Montaña pulled away from the Portuguese embrace and turned to the northeast at a speed of between 6 and 7 knots. At 12:30:06pm, the ship passed “Pico das Urzes” on the left. Latitude: 38.805213; longitude: -28.343418. Captain Ludwig planned to catch sight of the coast of the Iberian Peninsula somewhere around June 19th or 20th (although it could be sooner, as La Montaña, having reconciled with the wind, seemed eager to embrace her Portuguese and Galician sisters). From that date on, it will greet the rising waters of the San Martino, Monte Faro, and Monte Agudo Islands, and then enter Vigo Bay, planning to arrive at the Marina Punta Lagoa, north of the Port of Vigo, Galicia, Spanish State.

(Continuar leyendo…)

THE AZORES ISLANDS, PORTUGAL, EUROPE

 June 11, 2021.
(Note: Times and dates are in accordance with Mexican geography.)

With a dusty face, a cleaned and refreshed exterior, and repaired sails, La Montaña departed Cienfuegos, Cuba, on May 16 and headed East. Skirting along the edge of the Las Coloradas beach, with the Sierra Maestra mountains to its left, the ship was accompanied once again by the dolphins convoked by Durito Stahlkäfer, who cursed as the vessel passed the US aberration in Guantánamo. They were greeted by whales near Haiti, and Durito and the Cat-Dog disembarked on Tortuga Island^[i] mumbling something about buried treasure… or treasure to be buried. In support of the support team, Lupita, Ximena and Bernal amicably threw up, though they would have preferred to offer support some other way. In Punta Rucia, Dominican Republic, La Montaña docked and waited cautiously for strong winds to pass. On May 24, at daybreak and propelled by its sails alone (“as not to scare the wind,” Captain Ludwig said), La Montaña set off northwards. This time orcas greeted the ship, waving farewell as it departed Caribbean waters. Between May 25 and 26, the schizophrenic ship [el navío] – who thinks he is a she as well as a mountain – navigated around the Bahamas and on May 27 turned Northeast, now on the open ocean, Duc in Altum^[ii].

On June 4, having exited the so-called Bermuda Triangle, the ship and its esteemed crew reoriented East toward the rising sun. Between June 5-9, they navigated waters where, according to legend, the mythical city of Atlantis lies.

It was 22:10:15hrs on June 10 when, through the haze of the European dawn, from the top of La Montaña’s crow’s nest, the outlines of a sister mountain became discernable: Cabeço Gordo on Faial Island in the Azores Archipelago, autonomous region of the geography of Portugal, in Europe.

It was 02:30:45hrs on June 11 when the coast of the port of Horta came into view, just a stone’s throw away, bringing tears to the eyes of the crew and passengers. It was 7:30am in the Azores mountains. It was 03:45:13hrs when a port authority motorboat approached La Montaña to indicate where to drop anchor. At 04:15:33hrs the shop dropped anchor in front of the other mountains. At 08:23:54hrs the Port Captaincy picked up the crew members of La Montaña and took them to shore for Covid PCR tests, and returned them to the boat to await the results. At all times the “Autoridade Maritima” of the port of Horta was friendly and respectful.

The crew and passengers are in good health, “in good spirits, happy, with no problems, gossip, or fighting. (In the 421^st Squadron) they take care of each other.”

It is now time to tell you who else, besides the crew of the Stahlratte and the Zapatista 421^st Squadron, have made the voyage. Tasked with documenting the maritime journey are María Secco, independent filmmaker and photographer, and Diego Enrique Osorno, independent reporter. In the role of support team for the Zapatista delegation is Javier Elorriaga.

In accordance with the traditional Zapatista ways and customs, and in addition to paying their own expenses, these three people were required to show written authorizations from their families, partners and children. Each letter was presented to Subcomandante Insurgente Moisés. Wives, husbands, mothers, sons and daughters wrote and signed the authorization letters. I got to read them. There was a little bit of everything, from philosophical reflections to children’s illustrations, including a little girl’s respectful request for a whale. Nobody requested beetles or cat-dogs, which is either an affront or a relief, I’m not quite sure. In the children’s writing you could detect pride in the fact that their mother or father had to ask permission from them (as the Zapatista saying goes: “the ducks shoot at the rifles.”^[iii]) I imagine you will have the opportunity to get to know María and Diego’s observations, their anecdotes, their reflections and their assessment of their participation on “the front lines” (both are filmmakers) of this delirium. New gazes are always welcome and are refreshing.

-*-

When this news arrived in the mountains of Southeastern Mexico, the Zapatista communities sent a message to the crew of the Stahlratte via the captain: “Thank you, you all are fucking awesome.” They are still trying to translate it into German.

-*-

Something to reflect on: the motto of the Azores is “Antes morrer livres que em paz sujeitos” (Better to die free than live in peace as slaves).

-*-

In the distance, to the East, the Pillars of Hercules – which in their day were the limits of the known world – gazed in astonishment on a mountain that has made a journey by sea from the West.^[iv]

I testify.

SupGaleano.

June 11, 2021

[i]Small island off the northwest coast of Haiti which was a major center of Caribbean piracy in the 17^th century.

^[ii]“Duc in altum et laxate retia vestra in capturam” – “Cast out into the deep, and let down your nets for a catch” (Luke 5:4).

[iii]Phrase used when a subordinate attempts to go over the head of his/her boss.

[iv]The Pillars of Hercules was the name given in ancient times to the rocky mountains at the edge of the Strait of Gibraltar.

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Publicado en Camino al andar

Collage: Gabriela Banfi

El Escuadrón 421 ya va por su tercera semana en la mar.

Navegando a bordo de La Montaña, ya lejos del sureste mexicano y rumbo a Europa.

Navegando mares donde el wifi no funciona pero con el rumbo bien clarito. Y mientras aquí esperamos noticias, al otro lado de los océanos les compas corretean en mil preparativos para recibir a la delegación zapatista.

Faltan sólo unas cinco semanas para el desembarco. Por eso se organizan, enlazan, van y vienen alistando detalles.

En Madrid, España, se reúnen en pláticas y conversatorios con sonrisotas inocultables por los tiempos que pronto llegarán. También planean para este sábado Otros artes, otras medias, un evento cultural con talleres que ocurrirá este 29 en Vallecas.

En Atenas les compas también se reunieron y ya merito se organizan en Salónica.

Y en esta bitácora sin novedades desde el mar, les traemos en cambio un texto im-per-di-ble del maestro Juan Villoro. Lo tituló Ulises, zapatista zapatista y no queremos balconearles el final pero…nos revela adónde van los zapatistas.

Aún en el mar los zapatistas no quitan los pies de la tierra, ni por andar lejos dejan de mirar cerca. El EZLN junto al CIG y el CNI gritaron su solidaridad con las y los estudiantes de la Normal Rural de Mactumactzá con las y los estudiantes de la Normal Rural de Mactumactzá, quienes fueron reprimidos, detenidos arbitrariamente y víctimas de violaciones a sus derechos, incluida violencia sexual. “A nuestr@s herman@s de la Escuela Normal Rural Mactumactzá les manifestamos nuestra solidaridad completa y sin reservas”, les dijeron en un comunicado. Abrazaron también “la Campaña Nacional e Internacional por la Justicia y el Territorio en Azquetltán, municipio de Villa Guerrero, en el estado de Jalisco, México”.

Este colectivo, nosotres Camino al andar, también soltamos palabras para denunciar el atropello y abrazar a las y los normalistas de Mactumactzá.

Continuará…

Dolphins!

May 2021.

It was a dramatic moment. Cornered between loose ropes and the railing, the insect menaced the crew with his sword, while out of the corner of his eye he tracked the raging sea in which a Kraken, of the “kraken escarabujos” species (specialists in beetle-eating), was lurking. Then, the intrepid stowaway gathered his bravery, raised his multiple arms to the sky and roared, drowning out the sound of the waves crashing against the hull of La Montaña:

Ich bin der Stahlkäfer, der Größte, der Beste! Beachtung! Hör auf meine Worte! (I am the stainless-steel beetle, the biggest, the best! Attention! Listen to my words!)

The crew stopped short: not because a schizophrenic insect was threatening them with a toothpick and a plastic jar cap, nor because he spoke in German. It was because upon hearing their mother language after so many years of hearing only tropical, coastal Spanish, they were transported back to their homeland as if by a spell.

Gabriela would say later that the insect’s German was closer to that of an Iranian immigrant than that of Goethe’s Faust, but the captain defended the stowaway, insisting that his German was perfectly intelligible. And, since where the captain is in charge Gabriela is not, Ete and Karl approved, and Edwin, even though he only understood the word “cumbia,” agreed. What follows is the insect’s story translated from the German:

-*-

“The indecisiveness of my attackers gave me time to rethink my defensive strategy, repair my armor (because it’s one thing to die in an unequal fight, and another to do so in rags), and launch my counteroffensive: a story…

It was several moons ago, in the mountains of the Mexican Southeast. Those who live and struggle there had set a new challenge for themselves, but at that time they were living under a cloud of worry and discouragement because they lacked a vehicle for their journey. That was how I, the great, the ineffable, the etcetera, Don Durito of the Lacandón Jungle, A.C. de C.V. de (i)R. (i)L. arrived at their mountains (the abbreviations, as you should all know, stand for “Knight Errant of Versatile Cavalry and Unlimited Responsibility”)^[i]. As soon as word of my arrival got out, a throng of women of all ages, from teenagers to the elderly, came running to greet me. But I remained firm and did not succumb to vanity. I proceeded towards the quarters of the individual in charge of the as-yet unsuccessful mission. For a moment I was baffled: the impertinent nose of he who checked and re-checked the calculations of the cost of the punitive expedition against Europe reminded me of the captain who later became known as SupMarcos, whom I spent years teaching and training with my wisdom. But no: although his appearance is similar, he who calls himself SupGaleano still has much to learn from me, the greatest of the knights errant. (Continuar leyendo…)

After months of preparations, a delegation of the Zapatistas has set sail from Mexico towards Europe. The “reversed conquest” has well and truly started.

It was a genuine surprise when the Zapatistas published their communiqué “A Mountain on the High Seas” on October 5, 2020, announcing a tour of the EZLN (Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional) across five continents, starting with Europe. Even though the Zapatistas have not shied away from organizing initiatives in Chiapas and across Mexico — the March of the Color of the Earth just 20 years ago is a case in point — it is basically the first time since 1994 that they are leaving the borders of their homeland behind.

Then, on January 1 of this year, they published a Declaration for Life, co-signed with hundreds of individuals, collectives and organizations, outlining the objective of this voyage: making a contribution to the effort for anti-capitalist struggles — which are inseparable from the struggles for life — to converge in full consciousness of their differences and unhampered by homogenizing or hegemonizing forces.

In the past six months, extensive organizing has taken place at the European level, as well as in each individual country or “geography,” according to the Zapatista vocabulary. For instance, a francophone coordinating body has been established, which includes eight regional federations of collectives and local initiatives.

Meanwhile, the EZLN confirmed that a large delegation of more than a hundred members, three-quarters of which are women, was getting ready. The delegation is also said to be accompanied by members of the National Indigenous Congress–Indigenous Council of Government which unites Indigenous struggles across Mexico, as well as a contingent of the People’s Front in Defense of Land and Water of Puebla, Morelos and Tlaxcala which is fighting against the installation of a massive power plant that is threatening to divert water resources indispensable to the peasants in the region.

(Continuar leyendo…)

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Desde principios del mes de mayo, “La Montaña”, un navío en el cual viajan cuatro mujeres, dos hombres y una otroa, el Escuadrón 421, está surcando el Océano Atlántico, rumbo a las costas europeas dónde está previsto que llegue a mediados del mes de junio. Su objetivo: recorrer este continente que llamamos Europa, un primer paso al que seguirán otros en otras geografías, “buscando no la diferencia, no la superioridad, no la afrenta, mucho menos el perdón y la lástima. Iremos a encontrar lo que nos hace iguales”.

Desde nuestras geografías, territorios y espacios, les reiteramos la invitación a llegar a Europa, a visitarnos, a encontrarnos en estas tierras que no son solo las del capital salvaje y transnacional, sino que es el lugar desde donde luchamos, desde abajo y a la izquierda, para conseguir que la vida, y por lo tanto, el mundo, sea un lugar digno donde vivir.

En este año en el que se cumplen 20 de la Marcha del Color de la Tierra, que los zapatistas realizaron junto al Congreso Nacional Indígena, reclamando un lugar en esa Nación que los ignora, van a volver a navegar y caminar para encontrarse con otros, con otras, con otroas, para encontrarnos y decir bien alto que frente a la destrucción del planeta, una montaña navega la madrugada y en esa montaña viaja también nuestro corazón colectivo.

Desde nuestros territorios y pequeños espacios de lucha, esperamos con impaciencia la llegada de los y las zapatistas, portador@s del virus de la resistencia y la rebeldía, como ellos mismos dicen, su llegada a cualquier puerto del Atlántico, en este viaje por la vida en el que confiamos se rompan las fronteras, visibles y simbólicas.

Organizaciones, colectivos, individuos, firmantes:

(Continuar leyendo…)

At Sea

May 2021

Captain Ludwig, doing his due diligence in thinking of his passengers, recommended we set sail the afternoon of May 2. The storm surge forecast for May 3 was going to make the novice sailors suffer more than enough, which is why the captain proposed moving the departure up to 16:00hrs on May 2.

Subcomandante Insurgente Moisés listened attentively and agreed. Now that it’s fashionable to use the word “historic” for practically anything, and given that this is the first time ever that Zapatismo has carried out something we planned ahead of schedule (usually we get hung up and start late), we can say that this is a historic moment for Zapatismo.

Thus the 421st Squadron set sail at 16:11:30 on May 2, 2021. Here we present two different reports from the same stretch of navigation.

Report from the 421st Squadron to the Zapatista High Command
Itinerary of the ship La Montaña. Times correspond to official Mexico City time (UTC-5).

May 2, 2021. La Montaña begins its journey at 16:11:30 at a speed of approximately 4 knots (1 knot = 1.852 km/hour). La Montaña heads south-southeast at 16:21:30, and at 17:23:04, it initiates a slight curve to the east. At 17:24:13 it initiates maneuvers to deploy full sails. The crew, with support from the 421st Squadron, hoists the sails. At 17:34 the ship continues its curve and heads east. It completes the curve at 17:41 with the southern tip of Isla Mujeres to its north, and heads northeast toward the first free territory of the Americas: Cuba. With the wind in its favor, La Montaña maintains a speed of 8-9 knots, entering the Yucatan Canal at 23:01 at 6 knots.

May 3, pre-dawn. At 01:42 at a velocity of 8 knots, La Montaña approaches the Cuban coast near Cape San Antonio. At 8:18:00, a few miles to the south of the Roncali Lighthouse, the ship turns southeast at 5 knots. At 10:35:30 it turns to the north-northeast, speeding up to 7-8 knots, and gusts of wind damage the sails. A few miles southeast of Cabo Corrientes, the captain decides to enter the Bay of the same name. At 13:55 it nears Punta Caimán on its left. On May 3 at 14:25:15, the Captain decides to drop anchor off the coast of the Cuban town “María la Gorda” (latitude 21.8225; longitude 84.4987) in order to repair the damaged sail and wait for the wind to die down.

(Continuar leyendo…)