In case some Machas are enjoying Oaxaca City this summer, the second calenda is taking place this Saturday, July 10th. This year the motto is All people, all rights. Let’s celebrate being proud of who we are.

I think this will be an excellent opportunity to meet LGBT organizations based in that beautiful city.

The list of organizers is long: Red Oaxaqueña, Diáspora Feminista, Diversidades A.C., Colectivo Luzónica, Disidencia Queer, Colectivo Arcoíris, Red Nacional de Jóvenes Católicos por el Derecho a Decidir, CDD, Demysex Oaxaca, GLOBOCORPO, Sociedad Civil y Colectivo AAA.

Let us know how it was!

Segunda Marcha Calenda por la Diversidad Sexual, July 10th 2010, from Fuente de las 8 Regiones to the Zócalo, 12pm, Oaxaca City.

*Catron, thanks again for sharing information with us.

The main poster is after the jump, and if you look for more information about who is organizing this event click here. If you look for an after party, click here. Although you will have plenty of options, since people will share flayers about parties during the whole march.

Marcha del Orgullo LGBTTTI 2010, June 26th, departing from Ángel de la Independencia to Zócalo, 12hrs.

Last Saturday, during Carlos Monsiváis’ wake at Museo de la Ciudad de México, a group of young people unfolded a gay flag and put it on the writer’s coffin. Someone tried to take it away, but the group insisted and placed it right between Mexico and UNAM flags. So far, only one journalist has talked explicitly about Monsiváis’ sexuality and his links with the Mexican LGBT community.

A similar episode (link in Spanish) took place again during the wake in Bellas Artes. This time, it was the Mexican journalist Jenaro Villamil who put the rainbow flag on the casket despite the negative reaction of Consuelo Sáizar, president of the National Council for Culture and Arts (Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes).

A third episode of awkwardness was described by Andrés Duque, when musician and LGBT activist Horacio Franco not only played the flute right next to the casket, but also confirmed the rumors about Monsiváis’ sexuality in an interview with a LGBT website.

Carlos Monsiváis was one of the most influential intellectuals and writers in Mexico. He was a prolific author who also learned how to use radio and TV in order to disseminate his opinions about the PRI, the Catholic church and the conservative groups that dominate the Mexican government under the PAN’s rule.

Carlos Monsiváis' wake at Bellas Artes, via La Jornada

Above all, Monsi, as many of his fans called him, was considered the undisputed chronicler of Mexico City, where passers by could recognize him on the street—a privilege that very few intellectuals have, given the separation between academia and so-called popular culture in Mexico. Monsiváis was born and brought up within a Presbyterian family in San Simon Ticumac, a poor neighborhood of Mexico City, a fact that other intellectuals of his same generation with well-to-do backgrounds despised, making Monsiváis something like an outcast within the Mexican intelligentsia.

As an activist, Monsiváis was part of the 1968 movement that ended in the massacre in Tlatelolco, he supported the Zapatista movement in 1994, and labeled the elections of 2006 that took away the presidency from López Obrador a “fraud”.

As any other controversial character, Monsiváis had his flaws: His colleagues and close friends considered him a misogynist, and despite his close links with the feminist and LGBT movements, he never came out of the closet publicly. Like Juan Gabriel, one of the many pop icons that fascinated Monsiváis, he kind of choose to follow the principle of lo que se ve no se pregunta, while defending LGBT rights in Mexico and pointing out the homophobia and double standards with which the Catholic church attacked the LGBT community and, more recently, same-sex marriage in Mexico City.

It is kind of ironic that Monsiváis was outed during his wake, posing questions about the right to live (and die?) in the closet and the power of visibility for the LGBT community. But if you think about it, the gay flag made it to Bellas Artes, the most prestigious place where someone can have her or his wake in Mexico. To give some idea of how important is this, Frida Kahlo‘s wake was in that building. The fact that the LGBT community claimed a place in this ceremony speaks to a new generation that wants to publicly acknowledge the not-so-short history of Mexico’s LGBT community. It talks about the importance of sexuality when it comes to define an identity that, like in Monsiváis’ case, was shaped by being Mexican, attending the UNAM, and being a gay man.

We’ll never know how Monsiváis would feel about this forced outing, but it is certainly sad to read “Monsiváis never married and had no children” as if that could define his personal life (and happiness) at all.

If Monsiváis’ death means the end of an era, let’s hope for a new generation that embraces all the different aspects that shape human beings, including sexuality, and the joy that comes along with it when it is accepted as part of life.

Lesbian March*

For about four years (as I can recall)  this march has been celebrated as an alternative to the larger Gay Pride march in June that some consider more a carnival than a political protest. The motos of this march organized entirely by women are “Say no to the marketing of sexual diversity”; “Stop violent acts of the church, schools, medical science, family and political parties against women’s bodies”; “Stop feminicide all over the country”; “Against obligatory heterosexuality”, and “Stop total subordination of women in the world”.

In the past years, this march has been criticized because of the organizers’ reluctance to allow men’s participation–notwithstanding their political affiliation or good intentions. Apparently, this year things will change since men will be allowed to walk, although behind the main group.

Lesbian March,  from Zócalo to Monumento a la Revolución, 4 pm. If you want more information click here.

Chick’s Party

Never been there, but it advertises itself as “the best party for girls”. It offers an aerial dance show, go-go dancers, and a comfortable area to smoke and “make friends”. Karaoke from 7 to 9 pm and a couple of DJ’s will be playing the rest of the night. If you think this is not enough they also have valet parking….! My guess is that the scene would be similar to that of Lipstck, but you’ll have to find out.

Chick’s Party, Av. Chapultepec 456, near metro Sevilla. Cover: 80 pesos.

Rock Femenino

If you are looking for a more relaxed experience Foro Alicia is a great option. For more than ten years this legendary venue has been known as one of the few spaces in Mexico City where new groups of all musical genres can reach a quite diverse audience: rock, hip-hop, ska, rockabilly, cumbia, surf… you name it. This time, Los Leopardos (rockabilly), Black Violettes (rock) and famous Ultrasonicas will be playing. The last group features Ali Gua Gua, who also sings with our loved Kumbia Queers. This is definitely a great opportunity to dive within the alternative music scene of DF.

Rock Femenino, Multiforo Alicia, Av. Cuauhtémoc 91-A, Col. Roma, Tel. 55112100, Cover: 70 pesos.

*Thanks Catron for sharing this info with us.

This evening, the LGBT community will celebrate the legalization of same-sex marriage in Mexico City. After members of Mexico City PAN (National Action Party) fought against the bill–politically supported by Mexican president Felipe Calderón–the Supreme Court dismissed six appeals coming from the governors of Baja California, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Morelos, Sonora and Tlaxcala who argued that same-sex marriage law affected the principle of autonomy of the other states.

In spite of the triumph, some still speculate that the law will rise conservative reactions in other states, as it has happened after Mexico City government legalized abortion in 2007 which inspired 17 states to penalize those women who practice it and making D.F. some kind of island of lefty rights for women, and now for same-sex couples who probably will travel to Mexico City to get married.

However, the law requires that one of the members of the couple has to live in Mexico City for at least six months. Also, beware that today is the official day in which same-sex couple are allowed to petition a date to get married, which means that the actual weddings will start until March 12. If you are interested in getting married to a chilango or chilanga, you have to pay around 70 dollars (if you are marrying at the City Hall); if you are getting married at home you pay around 60 dollars, and if the judge has to go out of his or her jurisdiction you pay around 500 dollars. The good news is that massive marriages are for free, so you can expect a bunch of couples celebrating very soon. I guess that’ll be the case of Lol Kin Castañeda and Judith Vázquez, and Jesusa Rodríguez and Liliana Felipe, so expect more news on same-sex weddings. So far I haven’t known about any public gay male couples getting married, but promise to share the information if that’s the case.

The appointment today is at 5 pm at the Hemiciclo a Juárez (a.k.a HOmociclo a Juárez), very close to Bellas Artes and Hidalgo subway stations, right in front of Sheraton Hotel in Centro Histórico.

After same-sex marriage was legalized last December 21st, conservatives in Mexico City didn’t wait long to protest and take action against this legal decision. Mariana Gómez del Campo from the conservative Partido de Acción Nacional is the leader of a campaign against same-sex marriage who argues, first, that Mexican constitution states that marriage should be between a man and a woman. Second, Gómez del Campo and her followers argue that adoption by same-sex couples is against the rights of children. Having total support from President Felipe Calderón, Gómez del Campo has been promoting her cause through the press. Also, in order to prove how right she is about how a family should be, she conducted a survey to ask if Mexican people agree or not with same-sex marriage. The results were not reliable since the sample was too small to be representative of a general opinion. However, it proved to be a tool to promote negative opinions regarding GLBT families within Mexican society.

While many same-sex couples are already waiting for March 4th, the day in which they could legally marry, those who have children are worried about the consequences of a possible backlash that Gómez del Campo is promoting. Some even ask themselves if the endless desire of DF government to become the most advanced bastion–if not the only one in the whole country–in terms of social rights will always mean a worse situation for the rest of the country. It has already happened with abortion: after Mexico City’s government legalized abortion in 2007, 11 states have changed their local laws in order to criminalize women who had (illegal and dangerous) abortions.

The fact is that next Saturday a march will take place in order to defend same-sex marriage and adoption rights for same-sex couples. To be honest, I don’t really know who is organizing the march, in spite of having thoroughly perused their website. However, if you are interested in going, the poster above gives the information about the march. The tour will depart from the Ángel de la Indepedencia, and the last stop will be Calderon’s residency, Los Pinos.

In case some doubt that same-sex families do not exist in Mexico, you can click here.

This Wednesday the VII National Conference on Sexual Education and Sexology will start in Oaxtepec, Morelos. The Conference is organized by the Mexican Federation of Sexual Education and Sexology, a group of activists, and sexologists that promote sexual and reproductive rights in Mexico.

One of the highlights of the Conference is the presence of Mariela Castro, Raúl Castros’s controversial daughter who has taken actions regarding sexual diversity in Cuba. Castro will talk about the integration of the trans population in social policies, which I’d love to listen to, since it’s well known how difficult is to be gay, lesbian or trans in that Caribbean island.

Sexual diversity, sex among elderly people, self-esteem and sexuality, and how to talk about sex with children are some of the other lectures. You can see the whole program here, and if you go, don’t hesitate to report some of your impressions to Macha Mexico!

VII Congreso nacional de Educación Sexual y Sexología, from September 23rd to September 27th; Unidad de Congresos, Oaxtepec, Morelos; you can call for information to phone numbers 5601 2892 and 5601 4177.

This Thursday the Museo Universitario del Chopo is opening an exhibition brought to Mexico City by the Spanish organization Asociación Cultural Visible. The main purpose of this association, and thus, of the exhibition, is to open spaces for the GLBT community in order to achieve visibility and change the way that the broader society conceives these groups.

The highlight is the work of Yoko Ono, who made an installation with a tree where you can hang a little paper with your deepest desires. A piece that, as Ono says herself, attempts to encourage public participation and gather the people’s good purposes.

Other artists participating in this exhibition are the filmmaker Derek Jarman, as well as artists from Spain, France, Germany, Brazil, Cuba and Chile. Other activities will be part of the exhibition, such as workshops, and lectures. If you want to see the whole program click here.

Historias de Amor; Museo Universitario del Chopo at the Academia de San Carlos; Academia 22, Col. Centro; phone number 55352288, ext.110; Zócalo subway station

September is a patriotic month in Mexico, a time when you can find good food everywhere, parties, and of course, extravagant manifestations of Mexican nationalism. However, some GLBT people still manage to find spaces where they can get together and discuss their ideas during this time of the year.

Such is the case of the 1st. Conference of Sexual Diversity, that starts on September 17th, at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). The program includes lectures, music, and theater related to sexual diversity in Mexico, and its political issues. One of the highlights is the series of lectures on September 21st about the current laws within the UNAM regarding GLBT rights, as well as the history of those groups inside the National University.

The other highlight is the closing ceremony which will be partially in charge of our friends Burlesquimeras, as well as other performers.

The event is organized by Udiversidad, a group of students that thrive for equality, respect and tolerance towards sexual diversity–as they introduce themselves in their blog. This is certainly a good alternative if you don’t want to deal with hordes on the streets celebrating Mexican independence day until dawn.

1st. Conference of Sexual Diversity at the UNAM, from September 17th to September 21st, various venues. You can see the program here

The other event is the IV Festival Cultural de Diversidad Sexual which will take place in different venues all over the city of Zacatecas. Literature, art, movies, and even a puppet show are included in the program. Most of the activities are in the evenings which is great if you are planning to walk around Zacatecas in the morning.

Macha Mexico will certainly be there, although we’re still a little bit conflicted about whether going to one or the other conference. We’ll probably split between the sexual diversity activism, and the desire of knowing more, and therefore, taking some action regarding the global food crisis. Whatever happens, Zacatecas is a great city and this is a great opportunity to enjoy it. We’ll keep you posted about our findings in this Mexican northern city where, as far as I can recall, the food is great and the streets are full of visual pleasures.

The Global Food Crsis Conference, 13-15 august 2009, Ave. Preparatoria s/n, Col. Hidraulica, Zacatecas,, phone (492) 899 6945. Free entrance.

IV Festival Cultural de la Diversidad Sexual Zacatecas 2009, 11-22 August 2009, various venues.

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