Members of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) are commemorating the 32nd anniversary of the 1994 armed uprising this December. This uprising brought the model of capitalist development and the actions of dispossession, depopulation, and extractivism to the world stage, particularly affecting the peoples of the region, especially the indigenous peoples.
The Zapatistas issued an open invitation to an event they called the "Seedbed of pyramids, of stories, of loves, and, of course, disaffections." It is expected to bring together "thinkers, people from newer generations and not-so-young ones" to dialogue on "medium and long-term resistance actions" that allow for the construction of non-capitalist ways of life.
Around a thousand people from Mexico and other geographies and continents attended the inauguration. The former Subcomandante Marcos, who now calls himself "Captain Marcos," welcomed everyone and explained that their aim is, through critical thinking, to find "seeds that resist and rebel against the balance of the immediate."
Captain Marcos spoke about the Mayan peoples and their languages, with which the Zapatista peoples express not just words, but different forms of thought. "The comrades try to make themselves understood by you—also through the arts—they seek not only to transmit knowledge but to invite to action" that allows for building alternatives to capitalism.
He addressed the misunderstanding of Zapatista criticism and proposals, saying, "It is not just a problem of language (between Maya and Spanish speakers), it is a problem of vision. Always unsatisfied, we seek to change everything, starting with our relationships with nature and with the other, the different (...), seeking for them to listen to us, to know us, to understand us, and to respect us."
The event "Seedbed of pyramids, of stories, of loves, and, of course, disaffections" will continue until January 1st.
