Less than 500 metres south of the U.S. border, in front of a ochre-stuccoed shopfront signed 'Café Nueva Asia', a technicolor banner of the Virgin of Guadalupe hangs side by side with a red paper lamp... read more

No one had heard of Chiapas until January 1, 1994, when the EZLN seized government offices in the state capital of San Cristobal and five other surrounding towns. Now the Zapatistas are world re-known ... read more

It's 7.30 a.m. on Friday, June 3, a bright, fine morning in Morelia, the state capital of Michoacán. My Ford Explorer roars into life. I have on board two passengers and 199 pairs of glasses. The '... read more

To begin a discussion of the Black Experience in Mexico, it is important to establish the quantitative significance of the black slave population in the colonial era. One of the most frequent responses... read more

Afro-Mexicans of the Costa Chica   The purpose of these web pages is to introduce you to the culture and unique experience of Mexicans of African descent. If you are like most pe... read more

Remember that Mexican-American War (1846-1848) where the U.S. had a thing called "Manifest Destiny?" That meant President James K. Polk believed in the "sea to shining sea" destiny for the U.S.A. and t... read more

Mexicans are lining up on the south side of the Rio Grande and North Americans are lining up on the north side, each group of citizens looking for something from the other. For the North Americans, it'... read more

Here's an interesting novel set in turn-of-the-century Mexico City. It's a story that's mainly concerned with women's rights, which were just about non-existent in those times, and the political turbulence preceding the Mexican Revolution. Estela, a rather attractive and spirited lady, lives in a small rural town with her infant son, Noé. We meet her at the point in her life when she is leaving her husband and heading for Mexico City. Essentially she's looking for her former lover, Dr. Victor Carranza. read more

In July, I wrote about racism and how this affects business in Mexico. The article provoked a huge reaction. I got love mail and hate mail. This month I'll share some of the most thoughtful response... read more

Although denied officially and, personally by many Mexicans, racism in Mexico is so evident that most foreigners notice it right away. All you have to do is look at Mexican-produced television programs... read more

For an exotic place and a surprising destination, I strongly recommend The Instituto Cientifico de Na Bolom, the Scientific Institute of Na Bolom (House of the Tiger). It is located in the State... read more

There's no good news in Joel Simon's book. It's a catalog of the awful things that have happened in Mexico since the time of the Conquest. read more

I have been living in southern Mexico, in the city of Oaxaca, for two years noticing daily customs and ways of doing things that are not the same as where I lived in the mountains of Colorado. One big ... read more

According to the reports of the first Europeans to visit the New World, slavery was almost universal in what is now Mexico and Central America. Theoretically, with the arrival of Europeans, that should... read more

The only thing that is definitely known about Subcomandante Marcos, the ski-masked mystery man who leads the Zapatista rebels in the jungles of Chiapas, is that he is an intellectual. Conflicting sourc... read more

"El ombligo del universo" the ancient Mayas used to say about Mexico City. "The bellybutton of the world." Within this city of 17 million, there are many central spots, but, in my opinion, none stand o... read more

In recent decades, immigration to the United States has reached historic proportions. Many observers liken this large and sustained wave of immigration to the Great Migration at the beginning of the 20... read more

This novel is a kind of Mexican "Roots" - a big family survival saga covering three generations of two families, complete with a large cast of characters. Author Villaseñor has based his complex, sprawling tale on the experiences of his own family members and his interviews with them. In fact, even though this is a novel, the author has included several actual family photos of the people he's writing about. It certainly lends a measure of authenticity to the narrative. Historically, the novel covers the period from the Mexican Revolution, around 1910, to the Prohibition era in California. The action takes place in many parts of Mexico and in many states in the U.S. read more

These kids are Tarahumara indians who live in the Copper Canyon area. The Tarahumara are among the most marginalized of Mexico's indigenous peoples, and suffer from severe drought in the summer and nea... read more

A monument to the 45 refugee victims of the massacre on December 22, 1997 in Acteal, Chiapas, at the hands of a paramilitary death squad. The child's shoe is a symbol of the many children who died that... read more

This clown is plying his trade in the Oaxaca Zócalo. He probably needs change. Photography by Diana Ricci   There is a deep, dark, secret hole where all the change goes, and nobody k... read more

During the more than three years since the Zapatistas walked out of the jungle, and into history, El Sub has consistently predicted that he will not live to see victory. When I wrote this article, a li... read more

A latecomer brought by TV and consumerism from El Norte, this Santa, with his reindeer made from local tree branches, was greeted with a mixture of awe and nervousness by the children on the plaza in f... read more

This piece was written in the summer of 1995. The number of Mexican billionaires has diminished, but the kidnappings have increased. The photo is of the inlet to Santa Cruz Huatulco. Photography by D... read more