Ever since the creation of the Republic of Mexico, the indigenous people have been neglected, mis-treated, and have not been listened to. The first leader to help the natives was Emilio Zapata from 1910-1915. He was an illiterate Mayan who felt that the land needed to be redistrubted and felt that there needed to be more reforms. He rallied the farmers of southern mexico under the slogain, “Land and Liberty”. Since then, the native Mexicans have been given little rights or little more land and began to become disguted with the “unjust and illegitamite” 65 year old Mexican dictatorship run by the PRI.(Institutional Revolutionary Party). On January 1st 1994, a new group calling themselves the Zapatistas(named after the first Mexican revolutionist) declared war on the state of Mexico demanding that land be more equally distributed within the indigounous communities, wealth be more distributed throughout the country, and that the native Mexicans be grant
ed equal access to the political sytem at state and nation levels.
While the zapatistas cause havoc on the cities surrounding Chiapas, most of the citiziens of mexico support the zapatista movement. They give them food at rallies and at protests. Even though the zapatistas are poor and malnurushed, they still make sure all their supporters get food for free. They give out supplies, food, and guns to anyone who wants to join up, they feel its for the greater wealth of the EZLN. Although the zapatistas are condemned by the government 80% of their government are made up of Spanish Mexicans, while the prolitariat of mexico have some Indian blood. Eventhough the EZLN started off as group made solely up as ethnic native Americans, people from all over mexico have joined up. Most of the citizens are fed up with the wealth that the big capatilists make off of the workers. They feel they have a right to have a better life and be treated equal when compared to
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