It seems that the dust is settling down and Mexico is getting back to normal. Even though the Mexican government is still reporting persons killed by the notorious swine flu, allegedly the period of mass contagion is over. Therefore, schools are open again, and people should go back to business. A much needed change in [...]
Posts under ‘articles’
Notes on the deadly flu epidemic in Mexico City
If you are planning a trip to Mexico City, you have certainly read the news about the deadly flu or swine flu epidemic. Even though this is a respiratory disease in pigs caused by type A influenza, outbreaks in humans have been registered, and such is the case of Mexico City. Some speculations blame some [...]
Keeping Perspective: Depressing Coverage about Mexico
Anyone who follows the American news media’s coverage of Mexico recently knows that the news hasn’t been pretty. The peso is trading weakly against the dollar, making daily life harder for Mexico’s middle class and near impossible for Mexico’s poor. (The recent exchange rate has been between 13 and 15 pesos to the dollar. Good [...]
Interview with Artemisa Téllez
Macha Mexico caught up with Artemisa Téllez, self-described fiction writer, lesbian, literature student, professional agitator, amateur journalist, and low-budget diva. She has published a collection of poetry, Versos Cautivos (2001), and a collection of short stories, Un Encuentro y Otros (2005), and has been published in several anthologies, including the bilingual lesbian short story anthology [...]
The Art of the Bribe
Everyone seems to have their own “the time I bribed a cop in Mexico City” story, so I figured it was time to add my own to the fray. The culture around bribes and cops is so different here than it is in the United States, and, like other bloggers, I left the interaction feeling [...]
Responsible Tourism: Giving Back to the Communities You Visit
Anahí and I hope that the readers of this blog strive to be responsible travelers. We recognize that there are many issues involved, including economics, (U.S. and E.U.) foreign policy, the environment, and cultural relativism, to name a few. Therefore, I’d like to introduce a new series of articles about responsible tourism and what it [...]
Luzónica
Great machas in a great city. This is the best definition of Luzónica, a group of young queer women based in Oaxaca City, who seek to sensitize Oaxacan society about sexual diversity through arts and cultural expressions. Carina, Yiyi, Cois, Lety, Sofi—all of them between 19 and 30 years old—decided to create this group to [...]
“Lo que se ve no se pregunta”: Ana Gabriela Guevara
Some people say that appearances can be deceptive. Ana Gabriela Guevara, the Mexican track and field athlete, specialized in the 400 meters, is a good example of this. When she won the gold medal at the 1999 Pan American Games in Canada, many Mexicans were shocked by the strength and determination of this woman; her [...]
XXI Semana Cultural Lésbica-Gay
From June 24th to 27th the Semana Cultural Lésbica-Gay will be celebrated in Mexico City. This year, the slogan is “Desvío en construcción” (Deviation or Detour under construction) and it will take place in many venues in the city. The man in charge of this particular event was José María Covarrubias, a life-time activist during [...]
Gay Pride Mexico City: Stage Line-Up
June 28th marks Mexico City’s 30th annual gay pride march (and my first “pride” in Mexico City). The march starts at the Angel de Independencia in the Zona Rosa and ends at the Zócalo, where free musical and theatrical performances will take place on the main stage. These shows were coordinated by lesbian activist Martha [...]