Every Woman Is a World: Interviews with Women of Chiapas (Louann Atkins Temple Women & Culture)

Born in the remote mountains and tropical forests of southern Mexico, the elder women of Chiapas have witnessed tumultuous change during their lifetimes, which in some cases spanned the entire twentieth century. Through hard experience, these women have gained unique perspectives on the transformations that modernity has brought to their traditional way of life. Reflecting on this rich store of wisdom, artists Gayle Walker and Kiki Suárez began interviewing and photographing Chiapanec women between the ages of 60 and 108. In this book, they present the life stories of twenty-eight women, who speak for the silent members of a divided society--well-to-do, urban ladinas of European descent; mixed race, low-income mestizas; and indigenous Maya from the highlands and Lacandon rainforest. As the women tell their stories, they shed light on major historical events as well as the personal dramas of daily life. For some, the Mexican Revolution and the 1918 Spanish influenza epidemic are still painfully vivid. Others focus on recent social upheavals, such as the 1994 Zapatista Uprising. Women whose families had more resources fondly recall their high school days, while poorer women tell tragic stories of deprivation, hunger, and family violence. Particularly thought-provoking are the women's attitudes toward marriage, work, religion, and their own mortality. Considering the limited opportunities these women faced, Walker and Suárez sum up the significant theme of these interviews by observing that the women of Chiapas "remind us that if we are flexible, creative, and courageous, we have many more possibilities than we think we have." Contents......Page 10 Foreword......Page 12 Acknowledgments......Page 16 Introduction......Page 18 INTERVIEWS......Page 24 Guadalupe Vásquez......Page 26 Teresa Domínguez Carrascosa......Page 30 María del Carmen Gómez Gómez......Page 40 Juliana López Pérez......Page 46 Beatriz Mijangos Zenteno......Page 52 Juana Koh......Page 66 Merle Greene Robertson......Page 70 María Patishtán Likanchitón......Page 84 Carlota Zepeda Gallegos......Page 90 Luvia Amalia Burguete Sánchez......Page 98 Minerva Penagos Gutiérrez......Page 110 Ana María Refugio Pineda Gómez......Page 118 Koh Martínez......Page 124 Dolores Rovelo Argüelles......Page 130 Francisca Gómez López......Page 136 Manuela Ramírez Gómez......Page 144 Natividad Elvira Pineda Gómez......Page 148 Sebastiana Pérez Espinoza......Page 156 Dilery Penagos Gutiérrez......Page 162 Micaela Díaz Díaz......Page 168 Maruca Navarro, viuda de Alfonso......Page 172 María Meza Girón......Page 180 Dolores Maceiras, viuda de Suárez......Page 184 Victoria Aguilar Hernández......Page 192 Koh María......Page 200 Herminia Haro Haro......Page 206 Pascuala Pérez Gómez......Page 214 Rosa López......Page 220 GLOSSARY......Page 228 PEOPLE......Page 232 CUSTOMS......Page 247 EVENTS......Page 253 Bibliography......Page 258 Suggested Reading......Page 262 Author Biographies......Page 264 Born in the remote mountains and tropical forests of southern Mexico, the elder women of Chiapas have witnessed tumultuous change during their lifetimes, which in some cases spanned the entire twentieth century. Through hard experience, these women have gained unique perspectives on the transformations that modernity has brought to their traditional way of life. Reflecting on this rich store of wisdom, artists Gayle Walker and Kiki Suarez began interviewing and photographing Chiapanec women between the ages of 60 and 108. In this book, they present the life stories of twenty-eight women, who speak for the silent members of a divided society-well-to-do, urban ladinas of European descent; mixed race, low-income mestizas; and indigenous Maya from the highlands and Lacandon rainforest Born in the remote mountains and tropical forests of southern Mexico, the elder women of Chiapas have witnessed tumultuous change during their lifetimes, which in some cases spanned the entire twentieth century. This book presents the life stories of twenty-eight women, who speak for the silent members of a divided society. Compelling interviews with 28 women between the ages of 60 and 108, who describe the changes they've witnessed in the lifeways of Chiapas on the Mexico-Guatemala border.