Source-Mexconnect.com:The Jews of Mexico-Struggle for Survival
Jews in Mexico. a struggle for survival part 1
Shep Lenchek
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The survival of Judaism in Mexico is a tale of tenacity and tolerance. The story begins in Spain with the "Conversos", Jews who had converted to Christianity, always under duress.
It starts in 600 AD, the Visigoth king, Reccard, forcibly baptized 90,000 of his Jewish subjects and expelled those who would not accept Christianity. Some of the Conversos continued to practice their religion secretly for almost a century, then openly during the 800 years of Moorish rule. The number of Conversos grew during the 15th century when, in 1479, Ferdinand and Isabella launched a massive campaign to forcibly convert the Jewish population in Spain to Christianity.
With the birth of the Spanish Inquisition some three years later, the "Conversos" were now accused of secretly practicing Judaism. In 1492, all practicing Jews were expelled from Spain.
By 1530 the Royal Viceroy of Nueva Espagna, Antonio de Mendoza, had established law and order in the New World (some historians feel Mendoza himself came from a "Crypto-Jewish family. Mendoza was a very common name among Spanish Jews).
The "Conversos" were under increasing pressure from the Inquisition. Looking for a place in which they could retain their Spanish identity, they focused on Mexico. In 1531 large numbers of them left Spain and Portugal for the New World.
The inquisition had not yet come to Nueva Espagna and the new arrivals soon married into prominent Mexican families, became priests and bishops and enjoyed a 40 year period during which time, many began to practice Judaism openly. Doctors, lawyers. notaries-public, tailors, teachers and silversmiths, they brought much needed skills to the new colony and were well received. They settled in Vera Cruz, Campeche, Oaxaca, Guadalajara, Morelia and Mexico City.
By 1571 the Inquisition had arrived in the New World and again both practicing Jews and Conversos were under religious threat.
In 1579 the King of Portugal granted land for a colony north of Nueva Espagna, to a Portuguese nobleman, Luis de Carvajal. Named the "Kingdom of Nueva Leon," both Conversos and practicing Jews, banned in the Spanish colony, were welcome. But by 1641 the colony was gone. However, some of the original settlers had moved on to Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, then still part of Mexico, bringing with them seeds of Judaism that still survive.
One such family, named Villarreal, who freely acknowledge remote Jewish ancestors, has a web-site on the Internet ( http://members.aol.com/daniel5822/villarrealindex.html) that gives us an interesting look into the entire situation from the point of view of the Conversos. Located in South Texas, but with branches of the family still in Mexico, they openly acknowledge their Jewish heritage and are attempting to contact others with similar backgrounds, but make it clear that they will remain Catholics. They arrived as Conquistadors in 1519, most certainly 'New Christians,' since no practicing Jew could have served with Cortes. In 1573 they received a document from the King of Spain granting them the same status as "Old Christians. Yet in 1590, they left "Nueva Espagna" and settled in "The Kingdom of Nueva Leon."
Exactly why the ancestors of the Villarreal family left Nueva Espagna after approximately 71 years, during which they and their descendents enjoyed privileged status as original Conquistadors, is a question the living members of the family cannot answer. Perhaps it substantiates claims that the Inquisition often persecuted people who had sincerely accepted Catholicism, simply to strip them of wealth and power. This family was truly converted to Catholicism and remains so, but must have felt a threat to their safety from the Inquisition. Unlike others who fled, once safe in the "Kingdom of Nueva Leon," they did not return to Judaism. It appears that Jewish ancestry could cause problems for even devout Catholics.
Some 10 years later, all vestiges of open Judaism had disappeared. But what remained was perhaps as many as 20,000 Mexicans who had Jewish ancestors, almost five percent of the European population of that time.
It was not until 1865, during the reign of the ill fated Emperor, Maximilian, that an edict of religious tolerance was issued. Until then, only Catholics could be citizens. Some Jews who had arrived in the guise of "Conversos" and escaped the Inquisition, may have continued to practice Judaism secretly, but it was highly dangerous. As late as 1867 there were only 20 Jewish families in Mexico City and perhaps a dozen more in the rest of the country. It was not until late 1882, after the assassination of the Russian Tsar, Alexander II, that significant numbers of practicing Jews entered the country. In 1867 Benito Juarez, a Zapotepec Indian and a liberal, dealt what amounted to a deathblow to the Catholic Church. He banished the Papal Nuncio, seized church property, secularized hospitals run by the church and banned priests and nuns from wearing clerical garb in public. Religious processions were prohibited.
Now, Protestants were allowed to establish themselves in Mexico. With complete separation of Church and State now being enforced, and with the Catholic Church fighting for its life, it had neither the strength nor the inclination to concern itself with Jewish immigration. Basically, the only problems faced by the new arrivals were economic. The Jews who escaped from Russia to Mexico are the ancestors of possibly half of the present Jewish population.
In 1884 the Mexican government invited more than one dozen Jewish bankers to open branch banks in the country. With some sources of credit now available, Jews settled all over the country. Many of them became peddlers With merchandise strapped on a burro or mule, they brought housewares, clothing and novelties - heretofore not available locally - to the remote villages scattered throughout the Republic. Judaism has always recognized that the obligation to provide for the family comes before most other rules of Jewish law. Thus those who ventured into the hinterland were able to violate the rules of Kashruth, a code that sets up dietary rules, with a clear conscience, while remaining observant Jews.
By the time the next wave of Jews started to arrive in 1911 and 1913 and again in 1920-21, most of the former peddlers now owned stores. These newcomers came from what had been the Ottoman Empire and had lived there since being expelled from Spain. The Empire was breaking up, and centuries of tolerance were now over. As Sephardim, they re-established the style of worship that had existed in Spain before 1492. Language was no problem, since they spoke Ladino, a dialect of Spanish. Lacking capital, many of them started "sidewalk" businesses, displaying things on blankets spread on the sidewalk. Others became peddlers, replacing their more affluent co-religionists, who had settled in the larger cities of the Republic. Coming from a primitive part of the world, they had no difficulty in adapting to conditions in small-town Mexico. Some settled in places where Jews were totally unknown. But Mexicans and Jews adopted to each other well. In both groups, the family was the predominant social group and those who chose to settle in such places had experience in surviving in a non-Jewish environment. They struggled against living conditions, not hostility or persecution.
The next and last significant number of Jews to seek refuge in Mexico also came from Russia after WW I. Now a well-established Jewish community was there to receive them. The majority of those who chose Mexico rather than the United States, had either relatives or friends already settled in the country. Additionally in 1921 and again in 1924, new laws, passed in the U.S., restricted immigration, making Mexico even more attractive. Easing the way for this new influx, in 1917, President Venustiano Carranza started to revive the anti-clerical provisions of the Constitution of 1857 that had destroyed the position of the Catholic Church. Never popular, these laws had been disregarded and the Church had re-established itself. Now, Carranza, seeking to bring a form of Socialism to the country, revived them, and once again the church was in no position to protest the arrival of non-Catholics into the country. Additionally, they viewed the spread of Protestantism as a much greater threat, than that of Judaism.
From 1920 to 1930 Jews in Mexico enjoyed a period of stability during which they prospered.
The only recorded incidents of official anti-Semitism came in the 1930's. Suffering from a depression, Mexican labor unions pressured the government to enact restrictions on "Chinese and Jewish" immigration. Later in the same decade, neo-Nazi right wingers, financed from Berlin, staged anti-Jewish demonstrations in Mexico City. But not a single act of violence against Jews or Jewish property can be documented. It was just sound and fury without action, and garnered little support. This is not to say that some individual Mexicans do not harbor anti-Semitic feelings.
Despite strenuous efforts by the Jewish community to rescue Jews from the Nazis, they had little success. The Mexican government, now headed by Lazaro Cardenas, was more than willing to look the other way and did so when some 200 Jews from Cuba entered the country illegally
By and large, since the end of WW II, Mexicans Jews have encountered no more and possibly less anti-Jewish bias than other Jews throughout the Western World.
The Jewish experience must be divided into two parts - those whose families experienced persecution in Mexico, and those who have not. Conversos, who arrived between 1753 and 1821, when Mexico gained Independence from Spain and the Inquisition in Mexico ended, had been persecuted. By 1651, most of the "Crypto-Jews," had been wiped out. Their only legacy is those Mexican families, devout Catholics, who practice some Jewish customs, perhaps without realizing it. Those who suffered were those who had been promised a haven in the 'Kingdom of Nueva Leon." Some of them became Catholics. Their descendents know of their Jewish heritage, but remain Christians.
The Inquisition was never as virulent in Mexico as it was in Spain, where more than 4,000 people were burned at the stake. Many more were imprisoned for the "Jewish Heresy." Massacres were instigated that took thousands of lives. By contrast, between 1571 when the Inquisition was established in Mexico and 1821 when it ended, only about 110 people were actually burned at the stake. Perhaps the same number died under torture or in prison, either awaiting trial or after sentencing. There were no popular outcries against Jews. The Inquisition was imposed from Spain. It cannot be blamed on Mexicans.
Those who arrived between 1821 and 1865 were not allowed to become Mexican citizens. While this discouraged Jewish immigration, those who did enter the country, faced basically the same problems as those who were citizens. Political and economic chaos, not bias, was the problem.
Between 1882 and the 1930's those entering the country lived in harmony with their fellow Mexicans and since WWII there have been no real threats to Judaism. The miniscule number of Jews, just a small fraction of the total population, makes them invisible to the average Mexican. They no longer interest the Catholic Church. Passion plays still depict the Jews as being responsible for the crucifixion but when the play is over, it seems to have had no visible impact on day to day relationships between Jews and their neighbors.
The combination of tenacity on the part of Jews, and tolerance by Mexicans, both official and as individuals, has permitted Judaism to put down deep roots. Mexican Jews still struggle today against inter-marriage and migration to the United States and Israel. They have taken positive steps to handle these problems and, barring a radical change in the attitude of Mexicans or their government, are here to stay. We will examine these steps and the situation faced by Mexican Jews today in Part II.
Published or Updated on: January 1, 2000 by Shep Lenchek © 2008
Contact Shep Lenchek
Jews in Mexico. a struggle for survival part 1
Shep Lenchek
The survival of Judaism in Mexico is a tale of tenacity and tolerance. The story begins in Spain with the "Conversos", Jews who had converted to Christianity, always under duress.
It starts in 600 AD, the Visigoth king, Reccard, forcibly baptized 90,000 of his Jewish subjects and expelled those who would not accept Christianity. Some of the Conversos continued to practice their religion secretly for almost a century, then openly during the 800 years of Moorish rule. The number of Conversos grew during the 15th century when, in 1479, Ferdinand and Isabella launched a massive campaign to forcibly convert the Jewish population in Spain to Christianity.
With the birth of the Spanish Inquisition some three years later, the "Conversos" were now accused of secretly practicing Judaism. In 1492, all practicing Jews were expelled from Spain.
By 1530 the Royal Viceroy of Nueva Espagna, Antonio de Mendoza, had established law and order in the New World (some historians feel Mendoza himself came from a "Crypto-Jewish family. Mendoza was a very common name among Spanish Jews).
The "Conversos" were under increasing pressure from the Inquisition. Looking for a place in which they could retain their Spanish identity, they focused on Mexico. In 1531 large numbers of them left Spain and Portugal for the New World.
The inquisition had not yet come to Nueva Espagna and the new arrivals soon married into prominent Mexican families, became priests and bishops and enjoyed a 40 year period during which time, many began to practice Judaism openly. Doctors, lawyers. notaries-public, tailors, teachers and silversmiths, they brought much needed skills to the new colony and were well received. They settled in Vera Cruz, Campeche, Oaxaca, Guadalajara, Morelia and Mexico City.
By 1571 the Inquisition had arrived in the New World and again both practicing Jews and Conversos were under religious threat.
In 1579 the King of Portugal granted land for a colony north of Nueva Espagna, to a Portuguese nobleman, Luis de Carvajal. Named the "Kingdom of Nueva Leon," both Conversos and practicing Jews, banned in the Spanish colony, were welcome. But by 1641 the colony was gone. However, some of the original settlers had moved on to Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, then still part of Mexico, bringing with them seeds of Judaism that still survive.
One such family, named Villarreal, who freely acknowledge remote Jewish ancestors, has a web-site on the Internet ( http://members.aol.com/daniel5822/villarrealindex.html) that gives us an interesting look into the entire situation from the point of view of the Conversos. Located in South Texas, but with branches of the family still in Mexico, they openly acknowledge their Jewish heritage and are attempting to contact others with similar backgrounds, but make it clear that they will remain Catholics. They arrived as Conquistadors in 1519, most certainly 'New Christians,' since no practicing Jew could have served with Cortes. In 1573 they received a document from the King of Spain granting them the same status as "Old Christians. Yet in 1590, they left "Nueva Espagna" and settled in "The Kingdom of Nueva Leon."
Exactly why the ancestors of the Villarreal family left Nueva Espagna after approximately 71 years, during which they and their descendents enjoyed privileged status as original Conquistadors, is a question the living members of the family cannot answer. Perhaps it substantiates claims that the Inquisition often persecuted people who had sincerely accepted Catholicism, simply to strip them of wealth and power. This family was truly converted to Catholicism and remains so, but must have felt a threat to their safety from the Inquisition. Unlike others who fled, once safe in the "Kingdom of Nueva Leon," they did not return to Judaism. It appears that Jewish ancestry could cause problems for even devout Catholics.
Some 10 years later, all vestiges of open Judaism had disappeared. But what remained was perhaps as many as 20,000 Mexicans who had Jewish ancestors, almost five percent of the European population of that time.
It was not until 1865, during the reign of the ill fated Emperor, Maximilian, that an edict of religious tolerance was issued. Until then, only Catholics could be citizens. Some Jews who had arrived in the guise of "Conversos" and escaped the Inquisition, may have continued to practice Judaism secretly, but it was highly dangerous. As late as 1867 there were only 20 Jewish families in Mexico City and perhaps a dozen more in the rest of the country. It was not until late 1882, after the assassination of the Russian Tsar, Alexander II, that significant numbers of practicing Jews entered the country. In 1867 Benito Juarez, a Zapotepec Indian and a liberal, dealt what amounted to a deathblow to the Catholic Church. He banished the Papal Nuncio, seized church property, secularized hospitals run by the church and banned priests and nuns from wearing clerical garb in public. Religious processions were prohibited.
Now, Protestants were allowed to establish themselves in Mexico. With complete separation of Church and State now being enforced, and with the Catholic Church fighting for its life, it had neither the strength nor the inclination to concern itself with Jewish immigration. Basically, the only problems faced by the new arrivals were economic. The Jews who escaped from Russia to Mexico are the ancestors of possibly half of the present Jewish population.
In 1884 the Mexican government invited more than one dozen Jewish bankers to open branch banks in the country. With some sources of credit now available, Jews settled all over the country. Many of them became peddlers With merchandise strapped on a burro or mule, they brought housewares, clothing and novelties - heretofore not available locally - to the remote villages scattered throughout the Republic. Judaism has always recognized that the obligation to provide for the family comes before most other rules of Jewish law. Thus those who ventured into the hinterland were able to violate the rules of Kashruth, a code that sets up dietary rules, with a clear conscience, while remaining observant Jews.
By the time the next wave of Jews started to arrive in 1911 and 1913 and again in 1920-21, most of the former peddlers now owned stores. These newcomers came from what had been the Ottoman Empire and had lived there since being expelled from Spain. The Empire was breaking up, and centuries of tolerance were now over. As Sephardim, they re-established the style of worship that had existed in Spain before 1492. Language was no problem, since they spoke Ladino, a dialect of Spanish. Lacking capital, many of them started "sidewalk" businesses, displaying things on blankets spread on the sidewalk. Others became peddlers, replacing their more affluent co-religionists, who had settled in the larger cities of the Republic. Coming from a primitive part of the world, they had no difficulty in adapting to conditions in small-town Mexico. Some settled in places where Jews were totally unknown. But Mexicans and Jews adopted to each other well. In both groups, the family was the predominant social group and those who chose to settle in such places had experience in surviving in a non-Jewish environment. They struggled against living conditions, not hostility or persecution.
The next and last significant number of Jews to seek refuge in Mexico also came from Russia after WW I. Now a well-established Jewish community was there to receive them. The majority of those who chose Mexico rather than the United States, had either relatives or friends already settled in the country. Additionally in 1921 and again in 1924, new laws, passed in the U.S., restricted immigration, making Mexico even more attractive. Easing the way for this new influx, in 1917, President Venustiano Carranza started to revive the anti-clerical provisions of the Constitution of 1857 that had destroyed the position of the Catholic Church. Never popular, these laws had been disregarded and the Church had re-established itself. Now, Carranza, seeking to bring a form of Socialism to the country, revived them, and once again the church was in no position to protest the arrival of non-Catholics into the country. Additionally, they viewed the spread of Protestantism as a much greater threat, than that of Judaism.
From 1920 to 1930 Jews in Mexico enjoyed a period of stability during which they prospered.
The only recorded incidents of official anti-Semitism came in the 1930's. Suffering from a depression, Mexican labor unions pressured the government to enact restrictions on "Chinese and Jewish" immigration. Later in the same decade, neo-Nazi right wingers, financed from Berlin, staged anti-Jewish demonstrations in Mexico City. But not a single act of violence against Jews or Jewish property can be documented. It was just sound and fury without action, and garnered little support. This is not to say that some individual Mexicans do not harbor anti-Semitic feelings.
Despite strenuous efforts by the Jewish community to rescue Jews from the Nazis, they had little success. The Mexican government, now headed by Lazaro Cardenas, was more than willing to look the other way and did so when some 200 Jews from Cuba entered the country illegally
By and large, since the end of WW II, Mexicans Jews have encountered no more and possibly less anti-Jewish bias than other Jews throughout the Western World.
The Jewish experience must be divided into two parts - those whose families experienced persecution in Mexico, and those who have not. Conversos, who arrived between 1753 and 1821, when Mexico gained Independence from Spain and the Inquisition in Mexico ended, had been persecuted. By 1651, most of the "Crypto-Jews," had been wiped out. Their only legacy is those Mexican families, devout Catholics, who practice some Jewish customs, perhaps without realizing it. Those who suffered were those who had been promised a haven in the 'Kingdom of Nueva Leon." Some of them became Catholics. Their descendents know of their Jewish heritage, but remain Christians.
The Inquisition was never as virulent in Mexico as it was in Spain, where more than 4,000 people were burned at the stake. Many more were imprisoned for the "Jewish Heresy." Massacres were instigated that took thousands of lives. By contrast, between 1571 when the Inquisition was established in Mexico and 1821 when it ended, only about 110 people were actually burned at the stake. Perhaps the same number died under torture or in prison, either awaiting trial or after sentencing. There were no popular outcries against Jews. The Inquisition was imposed from Spain. It cannot be blamed on Mexicans.
Those who arrived between 1821 and 1865 were not allowed to become Mexican citizens. While this discouraged Jewish immigration, those who did enter the country, faced basically the same problems as those who were citizens. Political and economic chaos, not bias, was the problem.
Between 1882 and the 1930's those entering the country lived in harmony with their fellow Mexicans and since WWII there have been no real threats to Judaism. The miniscule number of Jews, just a small fraction of the total population, makes them invisible to the average Mexican. They no longer interest the Catholic Church. Passion plays still depict the Jews as being responsible for the crucifixion but when the play is over, it seems to have had no visible impact on day to day relationships between Jews and their neighbors.
The combination of tenacity on the part of Jews, and tolerance by Mexicans, both official and as individuals, has permitted Judaism to put down deep roots. Mexican Jews still struggle today against inter-marriage and migration to the United States and Israel. They have taken positive steps to handle these problems and, barring a radical change in the attitude of Mexicans or their government, are here to stay. We will examine these steps and the situation faced by Mexican Jews today in Part II.
Published or Updated on: January 1, 2000 by Shep Lenchek © 2008
Contact Shep Lenchek
Source-Mexconnect.com: The Jews of Mexico Part 2
Jews in Mexico. a struggle for survival part 2
Shep Lenchek
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Print
The vast majority of the approximately 50,000 Mexican citizens who practice Judaism via organized congregations are descendents of people who, from 1881 to 1939, found life-saving refuge in this country. Unlike the ancestors of many who migrated to the U.S. to avoid military service or seek better economic opportunity, most who came to Mexico were fleeing to save their lives. This has left a legacy of fear, buried in the minds and hearts of the present community of Mexican Jews. Can it happen here? That Mexico, a 97 percent Catholic country, ever became a haven for Jews, is in itself remarkable. By and large, it is a tribute to kindness and tolerance on the part of Mexicans and bears witness to the ability of Jews to adapt to new environments.
Determining the exact number of practicing Jews in Mexico is difficult. The main source of figures is the Comite Central Israelita de Mexico A. C.. Located in Mexico City, this organization serves as an overall liaison body between Jewish congregations all over the Republic. However, since all of the existing synagogues are either Orthodox or Conservative, the Comite has no contact with Jews who might affiliate with a Reformed congregation, if one existed, or with those who consider their Judaism cultural rather than religious.
The official Mexican census sheds little light on the actual number of Jews in the country. They classify as Israelites both Jews and Protestant sects. Additionally, there are some Mexicans of mixed Indian and European ancestry who profess Judaism. Some scholars claim those who worship in the Iglesia de Dios and the Casa de Dios might well be included in the total count. Both read the Old Testament and observe some of the rules that regulate the lives of observant Jews. Others note that Seventh Day Adventists do likewise. More research is necessary before they can be considered to be practicing a form of Judaism. However, there is a well-established synagogue in Venta Prieta that serves Mexican Indians who definitely observe Judaism. Charges brought by the Inquisition substantiate that Jews who fled to Nueva Espagna in 1531, did convert Indians before the Inquisition was established in the New World. However, neither the rabbinate nor the rest of Mexican Jewry recognize any of these three groups.
Presently, there is no official anti-Semitism visible in Mexico Evidence of the attitude of the modern Mexican Government is plentiful. Jews serve and have served in high government positions. The United States, Canada and Great Britain have felt free to send Jews as ambassadors and consuls general. Those in power have welcomed them all. Artists, authors, entertainers, journalists, entrepreneurs, native born or foreign nationals, professing Judaism, have thrived. Even the closed ranks of bullfighters opened their arms to a Brooklyn-born Jew, Sidney Franklin, who in the early 1920's became a popular matador and remained in Mexico after he "cut the pigtail" as an announcer of bullfights, on the radio and later on television.
In the past, the main problems facing Mexican Jews have been intermarriage and migration out of the country. Now, beginning in the late 1990's, another one is emerging.
Since 1994, a group named Kulanu, a Hebrew word meaning "all of us." has started to explore other aspects of Judaism, south of the Rio Grande. One of the principal subjects of their investigation is the status of the "Conversos." They have started to seek out such groups who, without the blessings of the Rabbinate, have returned to Judaism. Based in the United States, the group is attempting to close the schisms between the descendents of those who suffered forced baptism and the organized Mexican-Jewish community.
As of early 1999 they have made contact with "Converso" groups in Vera Cruz and Puebla who now practice Judaism. Going beyond seeking out those who know about their Jewish background, they are also gathering information about the many devoutly Catholic families who practice some Jewish rites. When questioned as to why they do so, the typical answer of these families is, "because my mother was taught to do so by her mother who in turn learned it from her mother who learned it from her mother." They may light candles on Friday night or keep separate sets of dishes for dairy and meat, but have no idea that what they are doing is Judaic in origin.
Lecturing at the Spertus Institute in 1995, Schulamite C. Halevey, herself the descendant of a family that left Spain in 1492 and later made its way to Israel, reported on this. She details a legend prevalent among anusim, a Hebrew word meaning "people who suffered forced baptism." They tell their children," We are not really Mexican. We are descendants of Spanish nobility." Thus, they follow "Jewish" rituals, such as observing dietary laws that prohibit mixing of milk and meat, slaughter chickens by cutting the throat, avoid pork, light candles on Friday night. Some close their businesses on Saturday. Questioned about this particular practice, they answer, "It is a day we spend with our families."
Perhaps without knowing it, they are observing the Jewish Sabbath. Too, they have been taught to marry only others who observe these same "noble" traditions. Without realizing it, they are attempting to preserve memories of a Hebraic heritage that has lain dormant for centuries. Members of Kulanu bear witness to many such situations. One of their goals is to fan whatever latent sparks of Judaism they discover. It is this effort that may cause problems for the Jewish community. Probably, trying to convince anusim to return to Judaism will not succeed. It is hard to visualize large numbers abandoning the Catholicism they have practiced for generations. But, they are becoming aware of their connections to the religion of their ancestors. Many seem interested in learning about such backgrounds. But the interest is academic. They are Catholics. Perhaps it will result in a reservoir of good-will for practicing Jews. On the other hand, it may stir up resentments.
Kulanu is also attempting to convince organized Mexican Jewry, that those who do wish to return to Judaism should be accepted. To date, the answer is "no." Perhaps there is still some resentment among Mexican Jews against those who, they feel, abandoned their religion under pressure. There is no question that such attitudes prevailed in 1492, the time of the expulsion from Spain. Those who fled used the term "Marranos", meaning "swine" to describe those who converted. But perhaps the strongest reason that present day Mexican Jews prefer to ignore this pool of "latent Judaism" is mainly to avoid antagonizing the Catholic Church, fearing an up-surge of anti-Semitism.
They are probably right. Thus, the people from Kulanu, attempting to convince some anusim to return to the religion of their ancestors, are really not welcome. Orthodox Jews do not proselytize. They insist that only those born of a Jewish mother are Jewish. Additionally, the rite of circumcision the historical mark of the "covenant" between Jews and Jehovah, is a deterrent to adult males who might consider conversion. Adding up all these factors, a warm welcome for anusim returning to Judaism seems highly unlikely. All but two of the 23 synagogues in Mexico City are Orthodox and in light of Orthodox views on who is a Jew, it is likely that their point of view about anusim will prevail.
Until 1990, very little attention had been paid to the history of Jews in Mexico. A book published in Israel, researched by Joan Comay with the assistance of the Nahum Goldman Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, devotes only one and a half pages to Jewish settlement in all Latin America and mentions Mexico only in listing places where Jews have settled. Called "The Diaspora Story" it deals with the Jewish experience all over the world since the "Babylonian Captivity" but falls short when it comes to discussing how Mexican Jews function in the final decades of the 20th Century.
Until 1995, the most complete study of the Jewish experience in Mexico was published by the University of Mexico in collaboration with the Tribuna Israelita and the Comite Central Israelita de Mexico. Titled Imagenes de un Encuentro and sub-titled "La Presencia Judia en Mexico Durante LaPrimera Mitad del Siglo XX, it is in Spanish and as the subtitle says, deals only with the first half of the century. It portrays a vibrant Jewish community, apparently well integrated into Mexican society, but with a higher carryover of their religion into everyday life than is found in most other Jews who live in the Diaspora.
But Mexican Judaism is not monolithic. Actually, there are four different communities, based on places of origin. Those from Aleppo, Damascus, the Balkans and Eastern Europe, each have their own synagogues. The gulf between Ashkenazim from Russia, Poland, Germany and other parts of Europe and Sephardim, mainly from Italy and what was once the Ottoman Empire, remains.
An Ashkenazi mother of our acquaintance, complaining about her son's intermarriage, finally revealed that he was marrying a Sephardic girl. Ultimately, her complaint was narrowed down to the fact that the new bride did not cook the same foods the boy grew up eating. But there are probably other reasons she might not have been willing to admit. It is possible that the Ashkenazim, most of whom trace their residence in Mexico back to the 1880's, are somewhat prejudiced against later arrivals. Eastern European Jews in the United States faced the same attitude. There, the older German-Jewish Community looked down on them. The original problem that kept the groups separate, was language. The Ashkenazim spoke Yiddish among themselves, the Sephardim spoke Ladino. Today, they all speak Spanish, but still retain separate identities and resist inter-marriage.
In 1995, a movie titled "A Kiss to This Land" directed by Daniel Goldberg, a Mexican Jew, was shown at the San Francisco Bay Area's Jewish Film Festival. The film recreates the Mexico that Jewish immigrants found when they arrived in the 1920s and 1930s. It points out differences between the Jews who settled in the U.S. and those who settled in Mexico. The producer contends that Mexican Jews feel their Jewish heritage much more strongly than American Jews and shows how it affects their everyday lives. The film captured the attention of scholars, both Jewish and non-Jewish, and in the last four years, the Jewish experience in Mexico has been explored and is now the subject of numerous books in English.
Next, in the final part of this series, we will examine in detail how the Jewish community in Mexico copes with its main problems and take a look into its future, as they themselves see it
Part 1
Published or Updated on: January 1, 2000 by Shep Lenchek © 2008
Contact Shep Lenchek
Shep Lenchek
The vast majority of the approximately 50,000 Mexican citizens who practice Judaism via organized congregations are descendents of people who, from 1881 to 1939, found life-saving refuge in this country. Unlike the ancestors of many who migrated to the U.S. to avoid military service or seek better economic opportunity, most who came to Mexico were fleeing to save their lives. This has left a legacy of fear, buried in the minds and hearts of the present community of Mexican Jews. Can it happen here? That Mexico, a 97 percent Catholic country, ever became a haven for Jews, is in itself remarkable. By and large, it is a tribute to kindness and tolerance on the part of Mexicans and bears witness to the ability of Jews to adapt to new environments.
Determining the exact number of practicing Jews in Mexico is difficult. The main source of figures is the Comite Central Israelita de Mexico A. C.. Located in Mexico City, this organization serves as an overall liaison body between Jewish congregations all over the Republic. However, since all of the existing synagogues are either Orthodox or Conservative, the Comite has no contact with Jews who might affiliate with a Reformed congregation, if one existed, or with those who consider their Judaism cultural rather than religious.
The official Mexican census sheds little light on the actual number of Jews in the country. They classify as Israelites both Jews and Protestant sects. Additionally, there are some Mexicans of mixed Indian and European ancestry who profess Judaism. Some scholars claim those who worship in the Iglesia de Dios and the Casa de Dios might well be included in the total count. Both read the Old Testament and observe some of the rules that regulate the lives of observant Jews. Others note that Seventh Day Adventists do likewise. More research is necessary before they can be considered to be practicing a form of Judaism. However, there is a well-established synagogue in Venta Prieta that serves Mexican Indians who definitely observe Judaism. Charges brought by the Inquisition substantiate that Jews who fled to Nueva Espagna in 1531, did convert Indians before the Inquisition was established in the New World. However, neither the rabbinate nor the rest of Mexican Jewry recognize any of these three groups.
Presently, there is no official anti-Semitism visible in Mexico Evidence of the attitude of the modern Mexican Government is plentiful. Jews serve and have served in high government positions. The United States, Canada and Great Britain have felt free to send Jews as ambassadors and consuls general. Those in power have welcomed them all. Artists, authors, entertainers, journalists, entrepreneurs, native born or foreign nationals, professing Judaism, have thrived. Even the closed ranks of bullfighters opened their arms to a Brooklyn-born Jew, Sidney Franklin, who in the early 1920's became a popular matador and remained in Mexico after he "cut the pigtail" as an announcer of bullfights, on the radio and later on television.
In the past, the main problems facing Mexican Jews have been intermarriage and migration out of the country. Now, beginning in the late 1990's, another one is emerging.
Since 1994, a group named Kulanu, a Hebrew word meaning "all of us." has started to explore other aspects of Judaism, south of the Rio Grande. One of the principal subjects of their investigation is the status of the "Conversos." They have started to seek out such groups who, without the blessings of the Rabbinate, have returned to Judaism. Based in the United States, the group is attempting to close the schisms between the descendents of those who suffered forced baptism and the organized Mexican-Jewish community.
As of early 1999 they have made contact with "Converso" groups in Vera Cruz and Puebla who now practice Judaism. Going beyond seeking out those who know about their Jewish background, they are also gathering information about the many devoutly Catholic families who practice some Jewish rites. When questioned as to why they do so, the typical answer of these families is, "because my mother was taught to do so by her mother who in turn learned it from her mother who learned it from her mother." They may light candles on Friday night or keep separate sets of dishes for dairy and meat, but have no idea that what they are doing is Judaic in origin.
Lecturing at the Spertus Institute in 1995, Schulamite C. Halevey, herself the descendant of a family that left Spain in 1492 and later made its way to Israel, reported on this. She details a legend prevalent among anusim, a Hebrew word meaning "people who suffered forced baptism." They tell their children," We are not really Mexican. We are descendants of Spanish nobility." Thus, they follow "Jewish" rituals, such as observing dietary laws that prohibit mixing of milk and meat, slaughter chickens by cutting the throat, avoid pork, light candles on Friday night. Some close their businesses on Saturday. Questioned about this particular practice, they answer, "It is a day we spend with our families."
Perhaps without knowing it, they are observing the Jewish Sabbath. Too, they have been taught to marry only others who observe these same "noble" traditions. Without realizing it, they are attempting to preserve memories of a Hebraic heritage that has lain dormant for centuries. Members of Kulanu bear witness to many such situations. One of their goals is to fan whatever latent sparks of Judaism they discover. It is this effort that may cause problems for the Jewish community. Probably, trying to convince anusim to return to Judaism will not succeed. It is hard to visualize large numbers abandoning the Catholicism they have practiced for generations. But, they are becoming aware of their connections to the religion of their ancestors. Many seem interested in learning about such backgrounds. But the interest is academic. They are Catholics. Perhaps it will result in a reservoir of good-will for practicing Jews. On the other hand, it may stir up resentments.
Kulanu is also attempting to convince organized Mexican Jewry, that those who do wish to return to Judaism should be accepted. To date, the answer is "no." Perhaps there is still some resentment among Mexican Jews against those who, they feel, abandoned their religion under pressure. There is no question that such attitudes prevailed in 1492, the time of the expulsion from Spain. Those who fled used the term "Marranos", meaning "swine" to describe those who converted. But perhaps the strongest reason that present day Mexican Jews prefer to ignore this pool of "latent Judaism" is mainly to avoid antagonizing the Catholic Church, fearing an up-surge of anti-Semitism.
They are probably right. Thus, the people from Kulanu, attempting to convince some anusim to return to the religion of their ancestors, are really not welcome. Orthodox Jews do not proselytize. They insist that only those born of a Jewish mother are Jewish. Additionally, the rite of circumcision the historical mark of the "covenant" between Jews and Jehovah, is a deterrent to adult males who might consider conversion. Adding up all these factors, a warm welcome for anusim returning to Judaism seems highly unlikely. All but two of the 23 synagogues in Mexico City are Orthodox and in light of Orthodox views on who is a Jew, it is likely that their point of view about anusim will prevail.
Until 1990, very little attention had been paid to the history of Jews in Mexico. A book published in Israel, researched by Joan Comay with the assistance of the Nahum Goldman Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, devotes only one and a half pages to Jewish settlement in all Latin America and mentions Mexico only in listing places where Jews have settled. Called "The Diaspora Story" it deals with the Jewish experience all over the world since the "Babylonian Captivity" but falls short when it comes to discussing how Mexican Jews function in the final decades of the 20th Century.
Until 1995, the most complete study of the Jewish experience in Mexico was published by the University of Mexico in collaboration with the Tribuna Israelita and the Comite Central Israelita de Mexico. Titled Imagenes de un Encuentro and sub-titled "La Presencia Judia en Mexico Durante LaPrimera Mitad del Siglo XX, it is in Spanish and as the subtitle says, deals only with the first half of the century. It portrays a vibrant Jewish community, apparently well integrated into Mexican society, but with a higher carryover of their religion into everyday life than is found in most other Jews who live in the Diaspora.
But Mexican Judaism is not monolithic. Actually, there are four different communities, based on places of origin. Those from Aleppo, Damascus, the Balkans and Eastern Europe, each have their own synagogues. The gulf between Ashkenazim from Russia, Poland, Germany and other parts of Europe and Sephardim, mainly from Italy and what was once the Ottoman Empire, remains.
An Ashkenazi mother of our acquaintance, complaining about her son's intermarriage, finally revealed that he was marrying a Sephardic girl. Ultimately, her complaint was narrowed down to the fact that the new bride did not cook the same foods the boy grew up eating. But there are probably other reasons she might not have been willing to admit. It is possible that the Ashkenazim, most of whom trace their residence in Mexico back to the 1880's, are somewhat prejudiced against later arrivals. Eastern European Jews in the United States faced the same attitude. There, the older German-Jewish Community looked down on them. The original problem that kept the groups separate, was language. The Ashkenazim spoke Yiddish among themselves, the Sephardim spoke Ladino. Today, they all speak Spanish, but still retain separate identities and resist inter-marriage.
In 1995, a movie titled "A Kiss to This Land" directed by Daniel Goldberg, a Mexican Jew, was shown at the San Francisco Bay Area's Jewish Film Festival. The film recreates the Mexico that Jewish immigrants found when they arrived in the 1920s and 1930s. It points out differences between the Jews who settled in the U.S. and those who settled in Mexico. The producer contends that Mexican Jews feel their Jewish heritage much more strongly than American Jews and shows how it affects their everyday lives. The film captured the attention of scholars, both Jewish and non-Jewish, and in the last four years, the Jewish experience in Mexico has been explored and is now the subject of numerous books in English.
Next, in the final part of this series, we will examine in detail how the Jewish community in Mexico copes with its main problems and take a look into its future, as they themselves see it
Part 1
Published or Updated on: January 1, 2000 by Shep Lenchek © 2008
Contact Shep Lenchek
Jews in Mexico Part 3(click)
Beautiful Cancun
Beautiful Acapulco
Beautiful Mazatlan
In 1821, Mexico won independence for itself from Spain. The new Mexican government, in a move to encourage development of a thinly populated area we know today as southeastern Texas, offered land grants to anyone, including Americans, who would be willing to inhabit the land. In return, settlers promised to obey Mexican law and observe Roman Catholicism.
Among the first Americans to receive a land grant was Moses Austin, originally of Connecticut, who planned to establish a colony in Texas. Austin died before his dream could be fulfilled, so the task of leading the people to Texas fell to his son, Stephen F. Austin. In 1823, the younger Austin led 300 families to the banks of the Brazos River, where each family received about 200 acres of fertile farmland and more than 4000 acres of range land.
Under Austin's extraordinary organizational skills, the colony prospered. Soon, many thousands of Americans flowed into the territory, attracted by the rich farm soil and the generous land grant policy of the Mexican government. Some settlers brought slaves and started up cotton plantations.
By 1830, the number of Americans living in Texas greatly outnumbered Mexicans, a fact that deeply concerned Mexican authorities. In an attempt to curtail American influence in Texas, Mexico closed the border to immigration from the United States, imposed taxes on the importation of American goods, and restated that slavery on Mexican lands was prohibited. The Mexican government then sent troops into the Texas province to enforce its laws.
Davy Crockett fights off Mexican soldiers with upraised rifle, in the final moments of the Alamo siege. Crockett and all defenders of the Alamo perished, but Texas gained a new battle cry "Remember the Alamo!", going on to win independence a few weeks later. Image courtesy of Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
The Americans in Texas protested against what they perceived to be a violation of their individual rights.
As tensions escalated over the next several years, the Mexicans responded by sending more troops. Finally, in 1835, violence broke out, prompting the Texans to reject Mexican rule and declare their desire for self rule.
In late 1835, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, the latest in a series of Mexican military dictators, decided to crush the rebellion. With an army of 6000 men, Santa Anna crossed the Rio Grande headed north to take care of the Texans once and for all. On February 23, 1836, Santa Anna's army began a siege against 187 men garrisoned at a fortified former mission called the Alamo, in San Antonio. Commanded by Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis, the brave defenders of the Alamo refused to surrender, despite overwhelming odds. Serving under Travis in the Alamo included a group of volunteers from Tennessee, led there by the famous backwoodsman Davy Crockett. On March 6, the Mexicans stormed the Alamo, finally scaling the walls and killing every last man inside, but at a cost to Santa Anna of some 1600 troops.
While Santa Anna was preoccupied at the Alamo, Texas formally declared its independence from Mexico on March 2. While the heroic standoff at the Alamo continued, Sam Houston raised an army of Texans to carry the fight onward.
Houston's forces surprised Santa Anna at San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, shouting "Remember the Alamo!" as they swept through the Mexican encampment. The Mexican general himself was taken prisoner, but bargained for his release when he promised to recognize Texas independence.
Upon his return to Mexico, Santa Anna reneged on his pledge, but made no further attempts to corral the feisty Texans. The Republic of Texas, also called the Lone Star Republic, was born. Not surprisingly, Sam Houston was elected as its first president.
During their revolution for independence, American sympathy was with the Texans, but when the new republic petitioned for statehood, strong opposition arose. Texas permitted slavery, causing members of Congress from northern states to argue against the admission of another southern slaveholding state. Others feared that Mexico would be provoked into war if Texas joined the Union. For these reasons, statehood for Texas was delayed.
As the election of 1844 approached, the annexation of Texas became a major campaign issue.
The Democrats rejected Martin Van Buren, a former president and member of their own party, in favor of James K. Polk of Tennessee, who strongly favored Texas statehood and westward expansion.
When the electoral college votes were counted, Polk easily outpaced Henry Clay of Kentucky. A majority of congressional candidates supporting expansion won likewise, a clear signal the public supported Texas annexation in particular and Manifest Destiny in general.
With the mandate sent by the voters, outgoing President John Tyler moved quickly to push a statehood resolution for Texas through both houses of Congress, ending the controversy over the fate of the Lone Star Republic. Finally, on December 29, 1845, Texas entered the Union as the twenty-eighth state.
Beautiful Cancun
Beautiful Acapulco
Beautiful Mazatlan
In 1821, Mexico won independence for itself from Spain. The new Mexican government, in a move to encourage development of a thinly populated area we know today as southeastern Texas, offered land grants to anyone, including Americans, who would be willing to inhabit the land. In return, settlers promised to obey Mexican law and observe Roman Catholicism.
Among the first Americans to receive a land grant was Moses Austin, originally of Connecticut, who planned to establish a colony in Texas. Austin died before his dream could be fulfilled, so the task of leading the people to Texas fell to his son, Stephen F. Austin. In 1823, the younger Austin led 300 families to the banks of the Brazos River, where each family received about 200 acres of fertile farmland and more than 4000 acres of range land.
Under Austin's extraordinary organizational skills, the colony prospered. Soon, many thousands of Americans flowed into the territory, attracted by the rich farm soil and the generous land grant policy of the Mexican government. Some settlers brought slaves and started up cotton plantations.
By 1830, the number of Americans living in Texas greatly outnumbered Mexicans, a fact that deeply concerned Mexican authorities. In an attempt to curtail American influence in Texas, Mexico closed the border to immigration from the United States, imposed taxes on the importation of American goods, and restated that slavery on Mexican lands was prohibited. The Mexican government then sent troops into the Texas province to enforce its laws.
Davy Crockett fights off Mexican soldiers with upraised rifle, in the final moments of the Alamo siege. Crockett and all defenders of the Alamo perished, but Texas gained a new battle cry "Remember the Alamo!", going on to win independence a few weeks later. Image courtesy of Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
The Americans in Texas protested against what they perceived to be a violation of their individual rights.
As tensions escalated over the next several years, the Mexicans responded by sending more troops. Finally, in 1835, violence broke out, prompting the Texans to reject Mexican rule and declare their desire for self rule.
In late 1835, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, the latest in a series of Mexican military dictators, decided to crush the rebellion. With an army of 6000 men, Santa Anna crossed the Rio Grande headed north to take care of the Texans once and for all. On February 23, 1836, Santa Anna's army began a siege against 187 men garrisoned at a fortified former mission called the Alamo, in San Antonio. Commanded by Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis, the brave defenders of the Alamo refused to surrender, despite overwhelming odds. Serving under Travis in the Alamo included a group of volunteers from Tennessee, led there by the famous backwoodsman Davy Crockett. On March 6, the Mexicans stormed the Alamo, finally scaling the walls and killing every last man inside, but at a cost to Santa Anna of some 1600 troops.
While Santa Anna was preoccupied at the Alamo, Texas formally declared its independence from Mexico on March 2. While the heroic standoff at the Alamo continued, Sam Houston raised an army of Texans to carry the fight onward.
Houston's forces surprised Santa Anna at San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, shouting "Remember the Alamo!" as they swept through the Mexican encampment. The Mexican general himself was taken prisoner, but bargained for his release when he promised to recognize Texas independence.
Upon his return to Mexico, Santa Anna reneged on his pledge, but made no further attempts to corral the feisty Texans. The Republic of Texas, also called the Lone Star Republic, was born. Not surprisingly, Sam Houston was elected as its first president.
During their revolution for independence, American sympathy was with the Texans, but when the new republic petitioned for statehood, strong opposition arose. Texas permitted slavery, causing members of Congress from northern states to argue against the admission of another southern slaveholding state. Others feared that Mexico would be provoked into war if Texas joined the Union. For these reasons, statehood for Texas was delayed.
As the election of 1844 approached, the annexation of Texas became a major campaign issue.
The Democrats rejected Martin Van Buren, a former president and member of their own party, in favor of James K. Polk of Tennessee, who strongly favored Texas statehood and westward expansion.
When the electoral college votes were counted, Polk easily outpaced Henry Clay of Kentucky. A majority of congressional candidates supporting expansion won likewise, a clear signal the public supported Texas annexation in particular and Manifest Destiny in general.
With the mandate sent by the voters, outgoing President John Tyler moved quickly to push a statehood resolution for Texas through both houses of Congress, ending the controversy over the fate of the Lone Star Republic. Finally, on December 29, 1845, Texas entered the Union as the twenty-eighth state.
Source-US coin values advisor.com : Manifest Destiny and the American war against Mexico
Source-Activist Post translation of article below
American Government pouring billions of dollars in Private Mercenary Armies in Mexico
Source-BBC NEWS EN ESPANOL
William Márquez
BBC Mundo, Washington
Lunes, 16 de enero de 2012
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La firma de seguridad privada, Blackwater, ha recibido varios contratos del gobierno de EE.UU.
El Departamento de Defensa de Estados Unidos, el Pentágono, está delegando su lucha contra el narcotráfico a través de contratos multimillonarios con empresas privadas que se encargan de prestar asesoría, capacitación y realizar operativos en países productores de drogas y con vínculos al llamado "narcoterrorismo", incluyendo América Latina.
El gobierno se desentiende así del trabajo "sucio" que acarrean los diferentes aspectos del combate contra las drogas para dejarlo en manos de compañías con ánimo de lucro que emplean mercenarios y cuyas tácticas están libres del escrutinio público y político, dicen sus críticos.
Contenido relacionado
EE.UU. reduce significativamente sus fuerzas armadas
¿Cómo quedará el ejército estadounidense tras los recortes?
Perry insinúa que si llega a presidente enviará tropas a México
El Pentágono dice que es parte de su estrategia para garantizar la seguridad del país y que se realiza legalmente y siguiendo estrictos parámetros.
No se trata de una actividad encubierta. La sección de prensa del Pentágono confirmó a la BBC que, en 1995, se estableció la Oficina de Programas de Tecnología Contra el Narcoterrorismo (CNTPO, por sus siglas en inglés) cuya última instancia es el subsecretario de Defensa para Antinarcóticos y Amenazas Globales.
El Departamento de Defensa enfrenta serios retos a su presupuesto.
Según el comunicado del Pentágono, la CNTPO provee "apoyo administrativo de programas en una amplia gama de actividades de antinarcóticos del Departamento de Defensa".
Este "apoyo administrativo" es básicamente la identificación y subcontratación de grandes compañías especializadas en seguridad y reclutamiento de personal élite armado que entran a operar en terceros países independientemente.
"Desde el 11-S y los conflictos en Irak y Afganistán se ha incrementado la necesidad de adquirir estos servicios", dijo a BBC Mundo el teniente coronel James Gregory, encargado de prensa.
"Desde Septiembre 11 y los conflictos en Iraq y Afganistán se ha incrementado la necesidad de adquirir estos servicios"
Teniente Coronel James Gregory, encargado de prensa del Pentágono
Según el portavoz, son contratos múltiples, de tiempo y entrega indefinida, que se otorgan cada cinco años. La próxima ronda de comisiones será en agosto de 2012.
Hasta ahora, los mayores contratos han sido entregados a las empresas Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Reytheon, ARINC y U.S. Training Center (una subsidiaria de Blackwater), informó el alto oficial.
Recortes
La práctica se arraigó hace una década durante el gobierno de George W. Bush, que utilizó numerosos contratistas -mercenarios, dirían algunos- en las guerras de Irak y Afganistán.
El Pentágono ya no está para entrenar fuerzas extranjeras como lo hizo en un entonces en Colombia.
Barack Obama ha continuado con la misma política y, en este momento, por ejemplo, la seguridad del personal diplomático en Afganistán depende en gran parte de empresas privadas de seguridad.
Una de las razones por las cuales el Pentágono está intentando privatizar varios aspectos de sus actividades tiene que ver con el presupuesto nacional que no ha podido resolverse por disputas partidistas entre el congreso y el ejecutivo.
"Se habla constantemente de que el Pentágono está en la mira de los recortes presupuestarios", dijo Larry Birns, director del Consejo para Asuntos Hemisféricos (COHA), un centro de investigación de tendencia izquierdista en Washington.
"De una manera subrepticia quieren reducir el presupuesto de la lucha antidrogas transfiréndola a las agencias privadas"
Larry Birns, director del Consejo sobre Asuntos Hemisféricos, COHA
"Para el congreso, los recortes en el área de la lucha antidrogas serán obligatorios si el presidente espera equilibrar su propuesta de impuestos y la adjudicación de fondos".
Según Birns, la guerra contra el narcotráfico es impopular y no tiene peso político salvo en un año electoral como éste, así que el Departamento de Defensa quiere borrar ese gasto de sus cuentas.
"De una manera subrepticia quieren reducir el presupuesto de la lucha antidrogas transfiriéndola a las agencias privadas", expresó el analista.
Contratos "no específicos"
El Plan Mérida contempla la asistencia de US$1.000 millones a México en la lucha antidrogas.
Los contratos para las empresas privadas son jugosos, la CNTPO cuenta con un presupuesto de US$15.000 millones, según lo confirmó el teniente coronel James Gregory.
El Pentágono no es muy específico con respecto a la extensión de la participación de los contratistas por razones, explica, de seguridad. Pero afirma que estos actúan en conjunto con las autoridades locales, "incluyendo en zonas de combate" aunque "no participan en redadas o arrestos".
Sin embargo, hay serias implicaciones con respecto a los países donde estarían las empresas privadas.
Aunque es posible que ciertas élites políticas en estos países estén al tanto de sus actividades e, inclusive, las hayan invitado, hay una potencial violación de la soberanía nacional que podría generar una reacción nacionalista si el público llegara a percatarse de la situación, comentó el profesor Bruce Bagley.
Además "estamos reconociendo, en efecto, que las instituciones en los cuerpos de seguridad en estos países son tan deficientes que los estamos reemplazando con mercenarios a sueldo", añadió.
Las autoridades militares aseguran que los contratistas están sujetos a las mismas leyes vigentes en EE.UU. y los países donde operan, pero Bruce Bagley insiste en que podría haber un coletazo si ocurrieran imprevistos que impliquen violaciones al derecho humanitario y se vincule a Estados Unidos con esta actividad. No obstante reconoció que "ésta es la ola del futuro".
"Estamos frente a unas unidades más pequeñas, más eficientes, más capacitadas que pueden hacer el trabajo sucio que a las fuerzas militares de Estados Unidos no se les permite ni se les exhorta a hacer", concluyó.
ORIGIN OF THE MEXICAN FLAG
When the Plan of Iguala was promulgated on the 24th of February of 1821, Don Agustín de Iturbide, a Royalist general who tried to make peace with the insurgents, the Catholic clergy, and the Royalists according to the stated plan, the Insurgent general, don Vicente Guerrero carried a flag with the colors of white, green, and red diagonal stripes, dedicating it to Don Vicente Guerrero on the second of March of 1821. The colors represented the three fundamental points of the Plan of Iguala or Plan of the Three Guarantees:
(1) the Independence of Mexico
(2) the recognition of the Catholic religion and
(3) the union of Spaniards and Mexicans.
The order of the colors and the shield (emblem) in the center underwent alterations through history until the President Don Venustiano Carranza decreed on the 20th of September of 1916, that the emblem of the eagle with a serpent would be official as it is known today.
The origin of the Mexican emblem is based on a tradition which declared: "After a long pilgrimage, ordered by the god Huitzilopochtli, the Aztecs found an eagle with a serpent between its claws. This was the foretold sign to found on that site the capital of its dominion."
William Márquez
BBC Mundo, Washington
Lunes, 16 de enero de 2012
Compartir
Envíe esta página por e-mail
Imprima esta nota
La firma de seguridad privada, Blackwater, ha recibido varios contratos del gobierno de EE.UU.
El Departamento de Defensa de Estados Unidos, el Pentágono, está delegando su lucha contra el narcotráfico a través de contratos multimillonarios con empresas privadas que se encargan de prestar asesoría, capacitación y realizar operativos en países productores de drogas y con vínculos al llamado "narcoterrorismo", incluyendo América Latina.
El gobierno se desentiende así del trabajo "sucio" que acarrean los diferentes aspectos del combate contra las drogas para dejarlo en manos de compañías con ánimo de lucro que emplean mercenarios y cuyas tácticas están libres del escrutinio público y político, dicen sus críticos.
Contenido relacionado
EE.UU. reduce significativamente sus fuerzas armadas
¿Cómo quedará el ejército estadounidense tras los recortes?
Perry insinúa que si llega a presidente enviará tropas a México
El Pentágono dice que es parte de su estrategia para garantizar la seguridad del país y que se realiza legalmente y siguiendo estrictos parámetros.
No se trata de una actividad encubierta. La sección de prensa del Pentágono confirmó a la BBC que, en 1995, se estableció la Oficina de Programas de Tecnología Contra el Narcoterrorismo (CNTPO, por sus siglas en inglés) cuya última instancia es el subsecretario de Defensa para Antinarcóticos y Amenazas Globales.
El Departamento de Defensa enfrenta serios retos a su presupuesto.
Según el comunicado del Pentágono, la CNTPO provee "apoyo administrativo de programas en una amplia gama de actividades de antinarcóticos del Departamento de Defensa".
Este "apoyo administrativo" es básicamente la identificación y subcontratación de grandes compañías especializadas en seguridad y reclutamiento de personal élite armado que entran a operar en terceros países independientemente.
"Desde el 11-S y los conflictos en Irak y Afganistán se ha incrementado la necesidad de adquirir estos servicios", dijo a BBC Mundo el teniente coronel James Gregory, encargado de prensa.
"Desde Septiembre 11 y los conflictos en Iraq y Afganistán se ha incrementado la necesidad de adquirir estos servicios"
Teniente Coronel James Gregory, encargado de prensa del Pentágono
Según el portavoz, son contratos múltiples, de tiempo y entrega indefinida, que se otorgan cada cinco años. La próxima ronda de comisiones será en agosto de 2012.
Hasta ahora, los mayores contratos han sido entregados a las empresas Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Reytheon, ARINC y U.S. Training Center (una subsidiaria de Blackwater), informó el alto oficial.
Recortes
La práctica se arraigó hace una década durante el gobierno de George W. Bush, que utilizó numerosos contratistas -mercenarios, dirían algunos- en las guerras de Irak y Afganistán.
El Pentágono ya no está para entrenar fuerzas extranjeras como lo hizo en un entonces en Colombia.
Barack Obama ha continuado con la misma política y, en este momento, por ejemplo, la seguridad del personal diplomático en Afganistán depende en gran parte de empresas privadas de seguridad.
Una de las razones por las cuales el Pentágono está intentando privatizar varios aspectos de sus actividades tiene que ver con el presupuesto nacional que no ha podido resolverse por disputas partidistas entre el congreso y el ejecutivo.
"Se habla constantemente de que el Pentágono está en la mira de los recortes presupuestarios", dijo Larry Birns, director del Consejo para Asuntos Hemisféricos (COHA), un centro de investigación de tendencia izquierdista en Washington.
"De una manera subrepticia quieren reducir el presupuesto de la lucha antidrogas transfiréndola a las agencias privadas"
Larry Birns, director del Consejo sobre Asuntos Hemisféricos, COHA
"Para el congreso, los recortes en el área de la lucha antidrogas serán obligatorios si el presidente espera equilibrar su propuesta de impuestos y la adjudicación de fondos".
Según Birns, la guerra contra el narcotráfico es impopular y no tiene peso político salvo en un año electoral como éste, así que el Departamento de Defensa quiere borrar ese gasto de sus cuentas.
"De una manera subrepticia quieren reducir el presupuesto de la lucha antidrogas transfiriéndola a las agencias privadas", expresó el analista.
Contratos "no específicos"
El Plan Mérida contempla la asistencia de US$1.000 millones a México en la lucha antidrogas.
Los contratos para las empresas privadas son jugosos, la CNTPO cuenta con un presupuesto de US$15.000 millones, según lo confirmó el teniente coronel James Gregory.
El Pentágono no es muy específico con respecto a la extensión de la participación de los contratistas por razones, explica, de seguridad. Pero afirma que estos actúan en conjunto con las autoridades locales, "incluyendo en zonas de combate" aunque "no participan en redadas o arrestos".
Sin embargo, hay serias implicaciones con respecto a los países donde estarían las empresas privadas.
Aunque es posible que ciertas élites políticas en estos países estén al tanto de sus actividades e, inclusive, las hayan invitado, hay una potencial violación de la soberanía nacional que podría generar una reacción nacionalista si el público llegara a percatarse de la situación, comentó el profesor Bruce Bagley.
Además "estamos reconociendo, en efecto, que las instituciones en los cuerpos de seguridad en estos países son tan deficientes que los estamos reemplazando con mercenarios a sueldo", añadió.
Las autoridades militares aseguran que los contratistas están sujetos a las mismas leyes vigentes en EE.UU. y los países donde operan, pero Bruce Bagley insiste en que podría haber un coletazo si ocurrieran imprevistos que impliquen violaciones al derecho humanitario y se vincule a Estados Unidos con esta actividad. No obstante reconoció que "ésta es la ola del futuro".
"Estamos frente a unas unidades más pequeñas, más eficientes, más capacitadas que pueden hacer el trabajo sucio que a las fuerzas militares de Estados Unidos no se les permite ni se les exhorta a hacer", concluyó.
ORIGIN OF THE MEXICAN FLAG
When the Plan of Iguala was promulgated on the 24th of February of 1821, Don Agustín de Iturbide, a Royalist general who tried to make peace with the insurgents, the Catholic clergy, and the Royalists according to the stated plan, the Insurgent general, don Vicente Guerrero carried a flag with the colors of white, green, and red diagonal stripes, dedicating it to Don Vicente Guerrero on the second of March of 1821. The colors represented the three fundamental points of the Plan of Iguala or Plan of the Three Guarantees:
(1) the Independence of Mexico
(2) the recognition of the Catholic religion and
(3) the union of Spaniards and Mexicans.
The order of the colors and the shield (emblem) in the center underwent alterations through history until the President Don Venustiano Carranza decreed on the 20th of September of 1916, that the emblem of the eagle with a serpent would be official as it is known today.
The origin of the Mexican emblem is based on a tradition which declared: "After a long pilgrimage, ordered by the god Huitzilopochtli, the Aztecs found an eagle with a serpent between its claws. This was the foretold sign to found on that site the capital of its dominion."
Wiki- Mexicans of European Descent
Mexicans of European descent, often called "güeros" (light-skinned) or blancos in Mexican Spanish, are generally those of light skin and predominantly European features which are most often associated with Mexico's upper and middle socioeconomic classes. The concept of "white" and race, in general, is defined in Mexico by ancestry and social class as much as it is by biological features. Another group in Mexico, "mestizos" also include people with varying amounts of European ancestry, and there is no clearly defined line between the racial groups of mestizos and güeros/blancos.
Europeans began arriving to Mexico with the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, with the descendents of the conquistadors, along with new arrivals from Spain formed an elite but never a majority of the population. Intermixing would produce a mestizo group which would become the majority by the time of Independence, but power remained firmly in the hands of the elite, called "criollo". While almost all European or Caucasian migration into Mexico during the colonial period was from Iberia, in the 19th and 20th century European and European derived populations from North and South America did immigrate to the country. However, at its height, the total immigrant population in Mexico never exceeded one percent of the total. Many of these immigrants came with money to invest and/or ties to allow them to become prominent in business and other aspects of Mexican society, but most either did not stay permanently or mix with Mexican society in general, except for some with the native criollo elite.
Today, most güeros are still associated with the Spanish colonial order. Although some would not be considered "white" by U.S. or European standards, one defining characteristic is that these people tend to keep themselves separate from the mestizo and other classes in Mexico. While the concept of race is relatively fluid, with large variation in skin color among mestizos, "white" or "European" looks are still strongly preferred in Mexican society, with lighter skin receiving more positive attention and foreign cultures considered to be "white", such as the United States, receiving deference.
ESTABLISHMENT OF EUROPEAN ELITE IN MEXICO
The main reason for the presence of European-descended people in Mexico is the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire in the early 16th century.[7][8]Hernán Cortés and the conquistadors, with their light skin, brown or blonde hair and light-colored eyes, had never been seen before by the people of Mesoamerica. There are stories that Moctezuma took Cortés to be the return of the God Quetzalcoatl, but this has been disputed. Cortés managed to conquer the Aztecs through a series of alliances with enemy peoples which in the end made the Spanish dominant politically, although a very small minority numerically.[7][9] Further migration into Mexico from Spain supplemented the numbers of ethnic Europeans during the colonial period.[9] The conquest and subsequent domination by Europeans was justified by the Spanish as the indigenous were uncivilized and needed to be converted to Christianity. Spanish language and culture was imposed with indigenous ones suppressed.[7][10]
The Mexican experience mirrors much of that of the rest of Latin America, as attitudes towards race, including identification, were set by the conquistadors and Spanish who came soon after.[9] Through the colonial period, the Spanish and their descendents, called "criollos", remained vastly outnumbered by the indigenous and "mestizos", or those of mixed Spanish and indigenous parents.[7][10] To keep power, the Spanish and criollo elite perpetuated the idea of "Spanish" being equivalent to "civilized". The population of Mexico (or New Spain) was organized into a hierarchical class system with those from Spain being the most privileged, followed by criollos, then mestizos than the indigenous. Classification of this system was mostly by race, which was determined mostly by whom one descended from. The system was not completely rigid and elements such as social class and social relations did figure into it. However, the notion of "Spanishness" would remain at the top and "Indianness" would be at the bottom, with those mixed being somewhere in the middle. This idea remained officially in force through the rest of the colonial period.[7]
Criollo resentment to the privileges afforded the Spain-born or peninsulares was part of the reason behind the Mexican War of Independence. When the war ended in 1821, the new Mexican government expelled the peninsulares in the 1820s and 1830s. However, Independence did not do away with economic and social privilege based on race as the Criollos took over those of the Spain born. A division between "Spanish" and "indigenous" remained despite a majority mestizo or mixed race population. However, biological features were often not enough to distinguish between the two in many cases and some mixing occurred even in the upper classes. The main distinction between criollos and mestizos became money and social class and less about biological differences. The Criollos distinguished themselves from the rest of society as the guardians of Spanish culture as well as the Catholic religion.[11]
Those considered to be white/criollo/European were never the majority of the country's population, reaching a peak at around 18% during the early 19th century, according to census records. By 1921, the last time the official census took race into account, about ten percent were considered to be "white".[12] This is one reason why many of the political struggles of the latter 19th and early 20th centuries would be between these elite and the majority mestizos.[10]
Mexicans of European descent, often called "güeros" (light-skinned) or blancos in Mexican Spanish, are generally those of light skin and predominantly European features which are most often associated with Mexico's upper and middle socioeconomic classes. The concept of "white" and race, in general, is defined in Mexico by ancestry and social class as much as it is by biological features. Another group in Mexico, "mestizos" also include people with varying amounts of European ancestry, and there is no clearly defined line between the racial groups of mestizos and güeros/blancos.
Europeans began arriving to Mexico with the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, with the descendents of the conquistadors, along with new arrivals from Spain formed an elite but never a majority of the population. Intermixing would produce a mestizo group which would become the majority by the time of Independence, but power remained firmly in the hands of the elite, called "criollo". While almost all European or Caucasian migration into Mexico during the colonial period was from Iberia, in the 19th and 20th century European and European derived populations from North and South America did immigrate to the country. However, at its height, the total immigrant population in Mexico never exceeded one percent of the total. Many of these immigrants came with money to invest and/or ties to allow them to become prominent in business and other aspects of Mexican society, but most either did not stay permanently or mix with Mexican society in general, except for some with the native criollo elite.
Today, most güeros are still associated with the Spanish colonial order. Although some would not be considered "white" by U.S. or European standards, one defining characteristic is that these people tend to keep themselves separate from the mestizo and other classes in Mexico. While the concept of race is relatively fluid, with large variation in skin color among mestizos, "white" or "European" looks are still strongly preferred in Mexican society, with lighter skin receiving more positive attention and foreign cultures considered to be "white", such as the United States, receiving deference.
ESTABLISHMENT OF EUROPEAN ELITE IN MEXICO
The main reason for the presence of European-descended people in Mexico is the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire in the early 16th century.[7][8]Hernán Cortés and the conquistadors, with their light skin, brown or blonde hair and light-colored eyes, had never been seen before by the people of Mesoamerica. There are stories that Moctezuma took Cortés to be the return of the God Quetzalcoatl, but this has been disputed. Cortés managed to conquer the Aztecs through a series of alliances with enemy peoples which in the end made the Spanish dominant politically, although a very small minority numerically.[7][9] Further migration into Mexico from Spain supplemented the numbers of ethnic Europeans during the colonial period.[9] The conquest and subsequent domination by Europeans was justified by the Spanish as the indigenous were uncivilized and needed to be converted to Christianity. Spanish language and culture was imposed with indigenous ones suppressed.[7][10]
The Mexican experience mirrors much of that of the rest of Latin America, as attitudes towards race, including identification, were set by the conquistadors and Spanish who came soon after.[9] Through the colonial period, the Spanish and their descendents, called "criollos", remained vastly outnumbered by the indigenous and "mestizos", or those of mixed Spanish and indigenous parents.[7][10] To keep power, the Spanish and criollo elite perpetuated the idea of "Spanish" being equivalent to "civilized". The population of Mexico (or New Spain) was organized into a hierarchical class system with those from Spain being the most privileged, followed by criollos, then mestizos than the indigenous. Classification of this system was mostly by race, which was determined mostly by whom one descended from. The system was not completely rigid and elements such as social class and social relations did figure into it. However, the notion of "Spanishness" would remain at the top and "Indianness" would be at the bottom, with those mixed being somewhere in the middle. This idea remained officially in force through the rest of the colonial period.[7]
Criollo resentment to the privileges afforded the Spain-born or peninsulares was part of the reason behind the Mexican War of Independence. When the war ended in 1821, the new Mexican government expelled the peninsulares in the 1820s and 1830s. However, Independence did not do away with economic and social privilege based on race as the Criollos took over those of the Spain born. A division between "Spanish" and "indigenous" remained despite a majority mestizo or mixed race population. However, biological features were often not enough to distinguish between the two in many cases and some mixing occurred even in the upper classes. The main distinction between criollos and mestizos became money and social class and less about biological differences. The Criollos distinguished themselves from the rest of society as the guardians of Spanish culture as well as the Catholic religion.[11]
Those considered to be white/criollo/European were never the majority of the country's population, reaching a peak at around 18% during the early 19th century, according to census records. By 1921, the last time the official census took race into account, about ten percent were considered to be "white".[12] This is one reason why many of the political struggles of the latter 19th and early 20th centuries would be between these elite and the majority mestizos.[10]
Source-Wikipedia White Latin America
Total population
White people
192 million – 209 million[1][2]
33% or 36% of Latin American population
Regions with significant populations
Brazil 93M[3] or 105M[4]
Argentina 38M[2]
Mexico 12.0M[5] or 17.0M[2] or 19M[6]
Chile 8.8M[2] or 16.3M[7]
Colombia 8.9M[4] or 11M[8]
Cuba 7.3M[9]
Venezuela 5.6M[10]
Peru 4.4M[4]
Costa Rica 3.5M[2]
Puerto Rico 3.2M[4]
Uruguay 3.1M[4]
Dominican Republic 2.0M[4]
Bolivia 2.0M[4]
Ecuador 1.4M[11]
Paraguay 1.3M[2]
Nicaragua 1M[4]
All other areas 1.1M[4]
White Latin Americans[14] are the people of Latin America who are white in the racial classification systems used in individual Latin American countries. Persons who are classified as White in one Latin American country may be classified differently in another country. In some countries such as Ecuador being white is socially desirable, because it is associated with high socio-economic status. The colonial rule in Latin America kept strict track of the blood purity of its subjects, considering Christian (i.e. European) blood to be purest. This has meant that in contrast to racial policies in the U.S. which have generally encouraged segregation, Latin American countries have often had miscegenation, since even small amounts of European ancestry could entail significant upwards social mobility.[15][16][17]
Throughout Latin America people who are White identify with heritage from European settlers arriving in the Americas throughout the colonial and post-independence periods. Many of the earliest settlers were Spanish and Portuguese, and after independence, Italians have led numerically among the millions of immigrants. The Spaniards and Portuguese round out the top three. Notably large immigration occurred as well by Germans, Poles, Irish, British, French, Russians, Belgians, Dutch, Scandinavians, Ukrainians, Croats, Swiss, Greeks and other Europeans.[18][19][20] In at least some countries, the white population also includes Middle Easterners/Southwest Asians. The majority are Christians of Lebanese, Palestinian, and Syrian origin, but there are Armenians, Maghrebi Jews (most Jewish Latin Americans are Ashkenazi), and others.[21]
Composing about 33% or 36% of the population as of 2010 according to some sources,[1][2][22] White Latin Americans constitute the largest racial-ethnic group in the region. Nevertheless, White is the self-identification of many Latin Americans in some national censuses, as seen further on in this article. According to a survey conducted by consultant Cohesión Social in Latin America, conducted on a sample of 10,000 people from seven different countries of the region, a 34% of the interviewée identified themselves as "White".[23]
Total population
White people
192 million – 209 million[1][2]
33% or 36% of Latin American population
Regions with significant populations
Brazil 93M[3] or 105M[4]
Argentina 38M[2]
Mexico 12.0M[5] or 17.0M[2] or 19M[6]
Chile 8.8M[2] or 16.3M[7]
Colombia 8.9M[4] or 11M[8]
Cuba 7.3M[9]
Venezuela 5.6M[10]
Peru 4.4M[4]
Costa Rica 3.5M[2]
Puerto Rico 3.2M[4]
Uruguay 3.1M[4]
Dominican Republic 2.0M[4]
Bolivia 2.0M[4]
Ecuador 1.4M[11]
Paraguay 1.3M[2]
Nicaragua 1M[4]
All other areas 1.1M[4]
White Latin Americans[14] are the people of Latin America who are white in the racial classification systems used in individual Latin American countries. Persons who are classified as White in one Latin American country may be classified differently in another country. In some countries such as Ecuador being white is socially desirable, because it is associated with high socio-economic status. The colonial rule in Latin America kept strict track of the blood purity of its subjects, considering Christian (i.e. European) blood to be purest. This has meant that in contrast to racial policies in the U.S. which have generally encouraged segregation, Latin American countries have often had miscegenation, since even small amounts of European ancestry could entail significant upwards social mobility.[15][16][17]
Throughout Latin America people who are White identify with heritage from European settlers arriving in the Americas throughout the colonial and post-independence periods. Many of the earliest settlers were Spanish and Portuguese, and after independence, Italians have led numerically among the millions of immigrants. The Spaniards and Portuguese round out the top three. Notably large immigration occurred as well by Germans, Poles, Irish, British, French, Russians, Belgians, Dutch, Scandinavians, Ukrainians, Croats, Swiss, Greeks and other Europeans.[18][19][20] In at least some countries, the white population also includes Middle Easterners/Southwest Asians. The majority are Christians of Lebanese, Palestinian, and Syrian origin, but there are Armenians, Maghrebi Jews (most Jewish Latin Americans are Ashkenazi), and others.[21]
Composing about 33% or 36% of the population as of 2010 according to some sources,[1][2][22] White Latin Americans constitute the largest racial-ethnic group in the region. Nevertheless, White is the self-identification of many Latin Americans in some national censuses, as seen further on in this article. According to a survey conducted by consultant Cohesión Social in Latin America, conducted on a sample of 10,000 people from seven different countries of the region, a 34% of the interviewée identified themselves as "White".[23]
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