Xuxub Must Die: The Lost Histories Of A Murder On The Yucatan (Pitt Latin American Series)

Today, foreigners travel to the Yucatan for ruins, temples, and pyramids, white sand beaches and clear blue water. One hundred years ago, they went for cheap labor, an abundance of land, and the opportunity to make a fortune exporting cattle, henequen fiber, sugarcane, or rum. Sometimes they found death. In 1875 an American plantation manager named Robert Stephens and a number of his workers were murdered by a band of Maya rebels. To this day, no one knows why. Was it the result of feuding between aristocratic families for greater power and wealth? Was it the foreseeable consequence of years of oppression and abuse of Maya plantation workers? Was a rebel leader seeking money and fame—or perhaps retribution for the loss of the woman he loved? For whites, the events that took place at Xuxub, Stephens’s plantation, are virtually unknown, even though they engendered a diplomatic and legal dispute that vexed Mexican-U.S. relations for over six decades. The construction of "official" histories allowed the very name of Xuxub to die, much as the plantation itself was subsumed by the jungle. For the Maya, however, what happened at Xuxub is more than a story they pass down through generations—it is a defining moment in how they see themselves. Sullivan masterfully weaves the intricately tangled threads of this story into a fascinating account of human accomplishments and failings, in which good and evil are never quite what they seem at first, and truth proves to be elusive. Xuxub Must Die seeks not only to fathom a mystery, but also to explore the nature of guilt, blame, and understanding. "Go looking for the old sugar plantation once famous in the Yucatan as Xuxub, and you will find only the crumbling remains of an old smokestack and a few scattered floor tiles by the river. This once bustling estate is now shrouded in mystery and leafy vegetation, and only a handful of Maya living nearby can still locate it. Little remains in common memory of Xuxub, although what happened there in 1875 made front-page news in New York, vexed Mexican-American relations for over fifty years, and has become a legend among the Maya people." Contents Introduction: Terrible Beauty 1 Promises of Quiet 2 A Dangerous Path 3 Protection 4 Between Strength and Weakness 5 The Will of God 6 Hubris 7 Unnatural Cruelty 8 Suitable Measures 9 Worldly Satisfaction Epilogue: Truth, Guilt, and Narrative Acknowledgments Abbreviations Notes Index Promises Of Quiet -- A Dangerous Path-- Protection -- Between Strength And Weakness -- The Will Of God -- Hubris -- Hubris -- Unnatural Cruelty -- Suitable Measures -- Worldly Satisfaction-- Epilogue ; Truth, Guilt And Narrative. Paul Sullivan. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Mayan rebels killed an American plantation manager in 1875, but no one has ever unravelled why this murder took place. Paul Sullivan's fascinating and skillful telling of this story reads like a mystery novel. Explores the virtually unknown events surrounding the murder of American plantation manager Robert Stephens and his workers by Maya rebels in the Yucatan in 1875 at his plantation, Xuxub.