Tales from the Old Country
Every Monday I will regale you with stories from the old country, my beloved Mexico. This weekly effort was motivated by my reflections on the historical figures I learned about in my short time in the Mexican educational system. Since coming to the U.S. I’ve become isolated with many parts of my own history and background, and I hope to reestablish some connection for myself and others who may also feel there are certain aspects of their self-identity that are murky or missing. For the rest of you, this is a lesson in international history and context.
O~o~O
Benito Juárez: Zapotec lawyer and President of Mexico, 1858 -1872
I imagine that the name Juárez conjures up amongst my southwestern brothers and sisters assorted sordid tales of a border city where all your carnal desires (and some not so desired) can come true. Tales of lost weekends and lost freedom in Mexican jails have come my way since I was in high school. Not that I’m thinking of any set in particular *ahem NMSU*, but en masse migrations south of the border to Ciudad Juárez during weekends and breaks are not uncommon, and also not recommended, but we’ll save that for a future College Survival in the Southwest 101 entry. I myself have spent time in and traveling through Juárez. Every trip to the U.S. when I was a little girl required hazarding the crazy traffic, and I went to summer camp at Vino Nuevo Church when I was fifteen. My family has long-standing relationship ties there, and its significance as a landmark on the border is long-established.
Yet, this initial link between name and city has hidden in its folds one of the gems of Mexican history. Indeed, Cd. Juárez, along with dozens of other cities throughout Mexico, is named after one of the country’s most honored leaders, Benito Juárez. He was a statesman and a president, famous for his staunch defense of human rights and his perseverance in the face of many adversaries and ideological opponents.
Benito Juárez rose from indigenous poverty to the zenith of the Mexican political system in his life. A Zapotec orphaned by age three, he struck out from his home in the village of San Pablo Guelatao in the state of Oaxaca at age 12 to fulfill what at the time was a vague yearning for greater learner and what later would become a legacy. Involved in a political system that experienced a tumultuous 19th century, his career stretched from defending landholding rights for indigenous peoples as a lawyer at the local and state levels beginning in 1834 to federal judge position (1842), governor of Oaxaca (1846-1852) and eventually as the leader of the Mexican nation from 1858 to 1872, the year he died.
While in each of these positions he championed and was the voice for the people in rural areas. He was responsible for stripping the Catholic Church of its extensive land holdings, building roads and creating schools. He worked in official capacities under both Conservative and Liberal administrations, turned down positions offered to him as Mexico faced the threat of becoming part of the French Empire between 1864 and 1867 (more about this on the Cinco de Mayo edition of Tales from the Old Country), and expelled an emissary sent by the Confederacy in 1861, since supporting an entity that kept almost half of its population in bondage directly contradicted his philosophy and work. He established reforms and a constitution that guaranteed rights of free speech and press, among others.
Like any person, much less a national leader, his ideological stance was complicated and has since been heavily scrutinized. Some historians condemn him of abusing executive power by remaining president for nearly twenty years. However, his dedication can be understood as a reaction to the many leaders, including Porfirio Díaz and Antonio López de Santa Anna, whose ideas of Mexico were less democratic and more dictatorial. He has been recognized across the Americas and across the world as a champion for causes that resonate across ethic and national boundaries. His relationship with the U.S. was multi-faceted, as he spent time in New Orleans as an exile under Santa Anna’s rule.
Overall, he was a man of intelligence and foresight, with staunch beliefs by which he stood and acted. It is impossible to unravel him from the modern incarnation of Mexico, which owes him many advancements and landmark turns for the better. An example of the determined human spirit, he persevered and returned to his battles, even where others might have called it quits. A legacy deserving of the honor to have streets and cities named after him. Some which might do well to look to his life for inspiration and direction.
References and further reading:
http://www.elbalero.gob.mx/kids/history/html/sxix/biojuarez.html
http://www.mexonline.com/benitojuarez.htm
http://www.notablebiographies.com/Jo-Ki/Ju-rez-Benito.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benito_Juarez