HISTORY OF MEXICO IN AN HOUR AND A HALF
Today Luis, a fluent tourist guide, gave us a tour of the tree filled square in front of the huge cathedral (Luis explained the hierarchy of churches, this beautiful building is only a parish church). His talk showed me how ignorant of Mexican history I am.
Two weeks ago, in faraway Marshall, NC, I watched the six episodes of Ken Burn’s The American Revolution which showed me how ignorant I am about the American Revolution,which was the revolution which started a series of revolutions all around the world including the Mexican revolution.
What was revealed to me about both revolutions was how much race and racial prejudice was a part of each. In spite of “all men being created equal” George Washington would not free any of his slaves or allow African slaves into the army until forced to, and was savage in his persecution of native Americans, partly because he had invested in huge sections of Native American land. And in Mexico Miguel Allende, one of the heroes of the Mexican revolution, was not fighting for independence from Spain but because he, only 3/4’s white, was not eligible for promotions in the Mexican army. George Washington also felt slighted when he wasn’t given promotions in the British military because he was in British colonial America. Personal pride contributed to each revolution for independence. Allende wanted to be treated as an equal Spaniard, Washington wanted to be an equal Englishmen.
We saw the house on the square where Miguel Allende was brought up and the building where Hidalgo and Allende plotted the Mexican rebellion. San Miguel de Allende was the birthplace of the Mexican revolution.
Another thing I learned from Ken Burns was how the American revolution was actually a civil war between British loyalists and Patriots who wanted independence. Much of the critical fighting was between Americans. And most of the fighting was done by the common man while the rich bought their way out. Not only was it a civil war but a very bloody war in which as many soldiers were killed by hand to hand combat, plunging bayonets into each other, as by erratic musket fire with disease killing as many as combat did with all kinds of rape and murder on both sides in occupied areas. It wasn’t the romantic war of Paul Revere that I have somehow absorbed.
The statue of Miguel de Allende heroically standing on the edge of the house where he grew up is how I imagine him, but in reality he was ignominiously captured and decapitated.
Another thing we leaned from Luis was why San Miguel is such a beautiful place. It is a UNESCO world heritage city with all kinds of rules about what development is allowed. Except for the churches no building is higher than 3 stories which results in a huge number of rooftop restaurants with great views. There are no stop lights or stop signs with almost every corner a blind corner and vehicles taking turns nosing their way through intersections. And one cobblestone is allowed on any street. There is not modern clain store presence except for a Starbucks near the square.
In the evening we attended a dance program in a theater in the center of town which consisted of a single woman dancer, Victoria Gutierrez, in white whirling for 40 minutes, with occasional pauses with dramatic gestures while a woman’s voice read interpretations of Atman, the divine energy. I thought it would last ten minutes and was hoping for the end. Here is the 40 minute video, see how long you last.
40 MINUTE DANCE PERFORMANCE
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BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 