Neozapatismo or Neozapatism (sometimes simply Zapatismo) is the political philosophy and practice devised and employed by the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (, EZLN), who have instituted governments in a number of communities in

Chiapas Chiapas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas, is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises Municipalities of Chiapas, 124 municipalities and its capital and large ...

, Mexico, since the beginning of the

Chiapas conflict The Chiapas conflict (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Conflicto de Chiapas'') consisted of the Zapatista uprising, 1994 Zapatista uprising, the 1995 Zapatista Crisis, 1995 Zapatista crisis, and the subsequent tension between the Federal government o ...

. According to its adherents, it is not an

ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or values attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely about belief in certain knowledge, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones". Form ...

: "Zapatismo is not a new political ideology or a rehash of old ideologies... There are no universal recipes, lines, strategies, tactics, laws, rules or slogans. There is only a desire: to build a better world, that is, a new world." Observers have described the EZLN as having

libertarian socialist Libertarian socialism is an anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist political current that emphasises self-governance and workers' self-management. It is contrasted from other forms of socialism by its rejection of state ownership and from other ...

and

Marxist Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...

influences. As UCL media studies lecturer Anthony Faramelli has written, "Zapatismo is not attempting to inaugurate and/or lead any kind of resistance to neoliberalism, but rather facilitate the meeting of resistance, and allow it to organically form worlds outside of exploitation." Others have proposed a broader conception of Neozapatismo that extends beyond the confines of political philosophy and practice. For example, according to Richard Stahler-Sholk, a

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

professor at

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, EMich, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern) is a public university, public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Michigan State Normal School, it was the fourth normal ...

, " ere are, in effect, at least three Zapatismos: One is the armed insurgency... a second is the project of autonomous government being constructed in Zapatista 'support base communities'... nd thethird is the (national and) international network of solidarity inspired by Zapatista ideology and discourse."

Origins and basic tenets

Observers have described the EZLN as having

Libertarian socialist Libertarian socialism is an anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist political current that emphasises self-governance and workers' self-management. It is contrasted from other forms of socialism by its rejection of state ownership and from other ...

and

influences. It is also influenced by the thought of

Emiliano Zapata Emiliano Zapata Salazar (; 8 August 1879 – 10 April 1919) was a Mexican revolutionary. He was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1920, the main leader of the people's revolution in the Mexican state of Morelos, and the insp ...

and Zapatista spokesperson

Subcomandante Marcos Rafael Sebastián Guillén Vicente (born 19 June 1957) is a Mexican insurgent, the former military leader and spokesman for the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) in the ongoing Chiapas conflict,Pasztor, S. B. (2004). "Marcos, Subcoman ...

(who since 2014 has used the pseudonym of Subcomandante Galeano). The first nucleus of guerilla fighters arrived in the Lacandona Jungle to form the EZLN in 1983. These were politicised mestizo and Indigenous people with a revolutionary Marxist ideology; many of them had a history with the National Liberation Forces (FLN). Interactions between this group and the Indigenous communities native to the Lacandona Jungle led to transformations in the political-military strategy originally proposed by the EZLN. This integration of socialism with the Mayan cosmology and history of resistance crystallised as Neozapatismo during the uprising of 1994. Notable transformations in the EZLN's revolutionary Marxist ideology included reformed ideas about leadership and power, rejecting

vanguardism Vanguardism, a core concept of Leninism, is the idea that a revolutionary vanguard party, composed of the most conscious and disciplined workers, must lead the proletariat in overthrowing capitalism and establishing socialism, ultimately progre ...

in favor of

radical democracy Radical democracy is a type of democracy that advocates the radical extension of equality and liberty. Radical democracy is concerned with a radical extension of equality and freedom, following the idea that democracy is an unfinished, inclusive, ...

. Subcomandante Marcos has offered some clues as to the origins of Neozapatismo. For example, he states:

Zapatismo was not Marxist–Leninist, but it was also Marxist –Leninist. It was not university Marxism, it was not the Marxism of concrete analysis, it was not the history of Mexico, it was not the fundamentalist and millenarian indigenous thought and it was not the indigenous resistance. It was a mixture of all of this, a cocktail which was mixed in the mountain and crystallized in the combat force of the EZLN...

He has also stated: In 1998, Michael Löwy identified five "threads" of what he referred to as the Zapatismo "carpet": # Guevarism # The legacy of Emiliano Zapata # Liberation theology # The Mayan culture # The democratic demands made by Mexican civil society. Nick Henck, an associate professor in the Faculty of Law at

Keio University , abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university located in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally established as a school for Rangaku, Western studies in 1858 in Edo. It was granted university status in 1920, becomi ...

in Tokyo, has suggested that Subcommander Marcos combined these non-indigenous elements (i.e. Guevarism, the legacy of Emiliano Zapata, and the democratic demands made by Mexican

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.classical Marxism Classical Marxism is the body of economic, philosophical, and sociological theories expounded by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in their works, as contrasted with orthodox Marxism, Marxism–Leninism, and autonomist Marxism which emerged after t ...

Marx Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...

and

Engels Friedrich Engels ( ;"Engels"
''

structural Marxism Structural Marxism (sometimes called Althusserian Marxism) is an approach to Marxist philosophy based on structuralism, primarily associated with the work of the French philosopher Louis Althusser and his students. It was influential in France ...

Louis Althusser Louis Pierre Althusser (, ; ; 16 October 1918 – 22 October 1990) was a French Marxist philosopher who studied at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he eventually became Professor of Philosophy. Althusser was a long-time member an ...

and

Nicos Poulantzas Nicos Poulantzas ( ; 21 September 1936 – 3 October 1979) was a Greek-French Marxist political sociologist and philosopher. In the 1970s, Poulantzas was known, along with Louis Althusser, as a leading structural Marxist; while at first a Leni ...

; and the post-structural,

post-Marxism Post-Marxism is a perspective in critical social theory which radically reinterprets Marxism, countering its association with economism, historical determinism, anti-humanism, and class reductionism, whilst remaining committed to the constru ...

Michel Foucault Paul-Michel Foucault ( , ; ; 15 October 192625 June 1984) was a French History of ideas, historian of ideas and Philosophy, philosopher who was also an author, Literary criticism, literary critic, Activism, political activist, and teacher. Fo ...

Indigenous components

Mayan Indigenous cosmology and philosophy make a significant contribution to Neozapatismo. For instance, Tojolabal and Tzeltal ideas about governing by consensus can by found in the Zapatista maxim to "command by obeying": Tzeltal authorities (''ja'teletik)'' must adhere to collective agreements and the authority lies with the community. A practice with Tzotzil origins is , which is work that is democratically determined, assigned, administered and carried out.

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

anthropologist Dylan Eldredge Fitzwater stresses that, "the practice of is at the heart of Zapatismo." Another Zapatista practice with origins in Indigenous philosophy is the maxim: ("asking we walk"). This approach of "walking while asking questions", was central to the Other Campaign (2006); and sociologist Ramón Grosfoguel describes the approach as a 'Tojolabal Marxism' that sets out as a rearguard movement that listens and asks questions instead of employing the

Leninist Leninism (, ) is a political ideology developed by Russian Marxist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin that proposes the establishment of the Dictatorship of the proletariat#Vladimir Lenin, dictatorship of the proletariat led by a revolutionary Vangu ...

strategy of a

vanguard party Vanguardism, a core concept of Leninism, is the idea that a revolutionary vanguard party, composed of the most conscious and disciplined workers, must lead the proletariat in overthrowing capitalism and establishing socialism, ultimately progres ...

that puts forward well-defined programs and theories.

''Lekil kuxlejal''

Fitzwater also discusses the Tzotzil concepts of and . He renders literally as 'to bring one another to largeness or greatness' and states that it 'implies the coming together of a big collective heart'. While this is sometimes rendered simply as ‘democracy’, Fitzwater prefers to translate it variously as 'to develop a collective heart', 'autonomous democratic governance' and 'a democracy of mutual respect', that arises from concrete practices of self-organization. Fitzwater further notes that promotes , which he renders literally as ‘the life that is good for everyone’, while noting that it is usually translated simply as 'autonomy' or 'dignified life’. ''Lekil kuxlejal'' is considered equivalent to '' Buen Vivir'' or '' Sumak Kawsay,'' which are expressions used in other Indigenous social movements that oppose neoliberalism and

extractivism Extractivism is the removal of natural resources particularly for export with minimal processing. This economic model is common throughout the Global South and the Arctic region, but also happens in some sacrifice zones in the Global North in Eu ...

Economic components

Agrarianism

Emiliano Zapata, the man for which Neozapatismo is named, was a strong advocate of Agrarianism in Mexico. He personally led rebels against the Mexican government in order to redistribute plantation land to farm workers. Zapata began by protesting the seizure of land by wealthy plantation owners, but his protest did not achieve its desired goal, so he turned to more violent means. The cause of redistribution was Zapata's true life's goal, and he frequently continues to symbolize the Agrarianist cause in Mexico even today. The Zapatista Army of National Liberation have made similar Agrarian demands such as

land reform Land reform (also known as agrarian reform) involves the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership, land use, and land transfers. The reforms may be initiated by governments, by interested groups, or by revolution. Lan ...

mandated by the 1917

Constitution of Mexico The current Constitution of Mexico, formally the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States (), was drafted in Santiago de Querétaro, in the State of Querétaro, Mexico, by a constituent convention during the Mexican Revolution. I ...

. For example, The Revolutionary Agrarian Law, which is longest and most detailed of the ten Revolutionary Laws that the EZLN issued along with its Declaration of Law when it commenced its uprising, opens by stating: "Poor peasants in Mexico continue to demand that the land be for those who work it. The EZLN reclaims the Mexican countryside’s just struggle for land and freedom, following in the footsteps of Emiliano Zapata and opposing the reforms to Article 27 of the Mexican Constitution." Crucially, Subcommander Marcos argues that the Zapatistas' Revolutionary Agrarian Law that was imposed following the land takeovers conducted by the EZLN and those indigenous peoples supportive of the movement in the wake of the January 1994 uprising, brought about "...fundamental changes in the lives of Zapatista indigenous communities...", adding:

...When the land became property of the peasants... when the land passed into the hands of those who work it... his wasthe starting point for advances in government, health, education, housing, nutrition, women’s participation, trade, culture, communication, and information... t waswas recovering the means of production, in this case, the land, animals, and machines that were in the hands of large property owners.”

Anti-neoliberalism

The Zapatistas’ political stance is

anti-capitalist Anti-capitalism is a political ideology and Political movement, movement encompassing a variety of attitudes and ideas that oppose capitalism. Anti-capitalists seek to combat the worst effects of capitalism and to eventually replace capitalism ...

in general and anti-

neoliberal Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pej ...

in particular. Mexico's participation in

NAFTA The North American Free Trade Agreement (, TLCAN; , ALÉNA), referred to colloquially in the Anglosphere as NAFTA, ( ) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that created a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The ...

was the catalyst for the 1994 Zapatista uprising; rebels stated that the neoliberal free trade agreement was a death sentence for the

Indigenous peoples of Mexico Indigenous peoples of Mexico (), Native Mexicans () or Mexican Native Americans (), are those who are part of communities that trace their roots back to populations and communities that existed in what is now Mexico before the arrival of Europe ...

. They also objected to the removal of Article 27, Section VII, from the

Mexican Constitution The current Constitution of Mexico, formally the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States (), was drafted in Santiago de Querétaro, in the State of Querétaro, Mexico, by a constituent convention during the Mexican Revolution. I ...

, which was required by NAFTA. The amendment had guaranteed land reparations to Indigenous groups.

Political components

Democracy

The councils in which the community may meet and vote on local issues in the Zapatista Chiapas are called the Councils of Good Government. In a Direct Democracy any issue may be voted on, any issue may be brought up to be voted on, and all decisions are passed by a majority vote. There are no restrictions on who may govern or who may vote. Since December 1994, the Zapatistas had been gradually forming several autonomous municipalities, called the

Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities The Zapatista territories are a ''de facto'' autonomous region controlled or partially controlled by neo-Zapatista support bases in the Mexican state of Chiapas since the Zapatista uprising in 1994 and during the wider Chiapas conflict. From 1 ...

(MAREZ). In these municipalities, an assembly of local representatives forms the or Councils of Good Government (JBGs).

Social components

Feminism

Even though feminism is seen as a result of Westernization, indigenous Mayan women have struggled to "draw on and navigate Western ideologies while preserving and attempting to reclaim some indigenous traditions... which have been eroded with the imposition of dominant western culture and ideology." Zapatista women are invested in the collective struggle of Neozapatismo, and of women in general. Ana Maria, one of the movement leaders, said, "the women’s struggle is the struggle of everybody" and that the Zapatistas fight not for their own interests but against all injustice and explotiation for all Mexicans. Indigenous feminism also created more collaboration and contact between indigenous and mestiza women in the informal sector. In the months following the Zapatista uprising, women's conventions were held in Chiapas and Querétaro, including over three hundred women from fourteen different states.

Women's revolutionary law

On the day of the uprising, the EZLN announced the Women's Revolutionary Law with the other Revolutionary Laws. The Clandestine Revolutionary Indigenous Committee created and approved of these laws which were developed through with consultation of indigenous women. The Women's Revolutionary Law strived to change "traditional patriarchal domination" and it addressed many of the grievances that Chiapas women had. These laws coincided with the EZLN's attempt to “shift power away from the center to marginalized sectors." The follow are the ten laws that comprised the Women's Revolutionary Law. #Women have the right to participate in the revolutionary struggle in the place and at the level that their capacity and will dictates without any discrimination based on race, creed, color, or political affiliation. #Women have the right to work and to receive a just salary. #Women have the right to decide on the number of children they have and take care of. #Women have the right to participate in community affairs and hold leadership positions if they are freely and democratically elected. #Women have the right to primary care in terms of their health and nutrition. #Women have the right to education. #Women have the right to choose who they are with (i.e. choose their romantic/sexual partners) and should not be obligated to marry by force. #No woman should be beaten or physically mistreated by either family members or strangers. Rape and attempted rape should be severely punished. #Women can hold leadership positions in the organization and hold military rank in the revolutionary armed forces. #Women have all the rights and obligations set out by the revolutionary laws and regulations.

Cultural component

Most of the locals speak in pre-Columbian languages indigenous to the area, rejecting the Spanish language's spread across the world. The Zapatistas teach local indigenous Mayan culture and practices. Official Mexican schools are criticized as not teaching Mayan heritage or indigenous languages, while teaching of Zapatista evils and beating Zapatista children. In Zapatista schools the history of the Spanish colonization is taught with the history of the Tzeltal, and the values of individualism, competition, consumerism and private property are seriously questioned and replaced with values like the community and solidarity. Students are often taught in local indigenous languages such as the Ch’ol language. Although local's culture is held in a prideful light, the Zapatistas are quick to criticize and change culture to fit more leftist ideals. Women in the Chiapas region were commonly forced into marriage, birthed many children, and were told to stay home as home makers. The Zapatistas have attempted to end this tradition and create a sense of Feminism in the local community.

Internationalist component

The Zapatista movement vision extended beyond Chiapas to the world at large. In their speeches and writings they talked of changing the world, building another world, or forging a new world. With the aim of reaching out to those living beyond the borders of Chiapas, and even Mexico, the Zapatistas have organized and hosted many events in their territory to which they invited people from numerous nations, and these have attracted attendees all over the globe. Some examples of such events include: The First Intercontinental Gathering For Humanity and Against Neoliberalism (1996); The First International Colloquium in Memory of Andrés Aubry: Planet Earth: Anti-systemic Movements; The First Encounter between the Zapatistas and the Peoples of the World (2007); The Second Encounter between the Zapatistas and the Peoples of the World (2007); The National and International Caravan for Observation and Solidarity with Zapatista Communities (2008); The Global Festival of Dignified Rage (2009); The Seminar on Critical Thought in the Face of the Capitalist Hydra (2015); The Zapatistas and ConSciences for Humanity (winter 2016–2017), and The Walls of Capital, the Cracks of the Left seminar (2017). In summer 2021, a delegation of Zapatistas traveled from Mexico to Europe in a symbolic 'invasion' (as a reversal of the

Spanish colonization of the Americas The Spanish colonization of the Americas began in 1493 on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic) after the initial 1492 voyage of Genoa, Genoese mariner Christopher Columbus under license from Queen Isabella ...

) of Spain and other western European countries. Many people from all over world drew inspiration from the Zapatistas. The writings of Subcomandante Marcos and the Zapatistas have been translated into well over a dozen languages, including, in addition to most European languages, Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Tamil and Turkish. Two major book-length studies in English, and one in Spanish, have been published devoted entirely to detailing the international appeal of the Zapatistas. These are: Thomas Olesen, ''International Zapatismo: The Construction of Solidarity in the Age of Globalization'' (London: Zed Books, 2005); Alex Khasnabish, ''Zapatismo Beyond Borders: New Imaginations of Political Possibility'' (Toronto:

University of Toronto Press The University of Toronto Press is a Canadian university press. Although it was founded in 1901, the press did not actually publish any books until 1911. The press originally printed only examination books and the university calendar. Its first s ...

, 2008); and Guiomar Rovira, (Mexico City: Ediciones Era, 2009). In addition, a 2019 volume of the Mexican journal contains articles detailing the reception, influence, and impact of Neozapatismo in Brazil, Chile, China, Cuba and Iran. The same year saw the publication of Nick Henck's ''Subcomandante Marcos: Global Rebel Icon'' which contained a chapter that summarizes, synthesizes and supplements the work of Khasnabish and Olesen on the international reach and appeal of Neozapatismo in general and Subcomandante Marcos in particular. It is not surprising therefore that Subcomandante Marcos should have declared that "...Zapatismo’s connection was stronger with other countries than with Mexico... those who lived farther away were closer to us..." This is supported in research that shows newer networks of solidarity with the Neozapatismo movement emphasize participants' similarity and build their solidarity from the view that their grievances are interlinked.

Activist philosophy

The Zapatistas consider the Mexican government so out of touch with its people it is illegitimate. Other than violence in the

the Zapatistas have organized peaceful protests such as The Other Campaign, although some of their peaceful protests have turned violent after police interactions.

References

Bibliography

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