The dictionary defines the word Caudillo as “a politician backed by a military force” and a study of Mexican history reveals a country that from its very beginning until well into the 20th Century was controlled by men whose had seized power by force rather than through the electoral process. Another definition of Caudillo is “strongman” and in this […]
Continue Reading In many ways, Porfirio Díaz is an enigma. Although he always gave lip service to democracy, during the thirty-five years that he controlled Mexico (1876 – 1911) he rode rough shod over freedom of speech, controlled the press, exiled dissidents and jailed opponents without trials. His first formal education headed him toward the priesthood but […]
Continue ReadingToday, the visible remains of Mexico’s Colonial era are the ornate churches and palacios, either government office buildings or the homes of Colonial officials, still surviving, in the center of Mexico’s larger cities. The palacios have thick walls and portales, broad covered walkways, with wide arches supported by pillars. They shelter sidewalk cafes, vendors of […]
Continue ReadingQuetzalcoatl was coming. Moctezuma had already sent wizards, magicians and seers, to cast spells that would destroy or at least deter the Spaniards from continuing toward his capital. Their failure had re-confirmed the emperor’s opinion that these were indeed the gods of the legend. He had also sent ambassadors with gold and other treasures to […]
Continue ReadingPerhaps the most startling thing revealed by the Aztec account of the Conquest of Mexico, is that unknowingly, the Conquistadors had invaded the country at a perfect time. Superstition had produced self-doubt and smallpox was already in the incubation stage. In a sense, the victory of the Spaniards was a self-fulfilling prophecy based on omens and legends. […]
Continue ReadingThe Spanish returned. With Cuitlahuac, the brother of Moctezuma who had advised against welcoming the Conquistadors, now elected as their king, the Aztecs were confident that any attempted return would be met by force and repelled. For some eight Aztec months (a month was 20 days and 18 made a year) all went well. The […]
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Long before the first European set foot in what is now Mexico, indigenous women not only followed their male fellow-tribesmen into battle but in many instances took up the arms of those killed or wounded and stood shoulder to shoulder with the tribe’s warriors. Archeologists believe that over a period of time the most valiant […]
Continue ReadingThe very word has connotations of persecution, repression, hardship and escape. It also describes people with courage, stamina, the ability to adapt and almost always a moral strength and conviction that sets them apart from those who succumbed. Perhaps 90 % of all Mexican Jews are the descendants of ancestors who came to the New […]
Continue ReadingThe 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 […]
Continue ReadingThe 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 […]
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