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.

Sorry for the long hiatus here at Macha Mexico, but what better to lure us out of hibernation than the Kumbia Queers‘ new Mexican tour!

That’s right, Macha Mexico’s favorite queer-core Mexican/Argentine cumbia/punk band is back in Mexico for a month long tour. The majority of the shows are in Mexico City (with a few She Devils shows mixed in), but they’ll also heading north to Querétaro and Guanajuato, south to Oaxaca, east to Cuernavaca, and west to Veracruz.  Check out the Kumbia Queers’ website for complete dates and details of the Mexico: Te Quiero de a Madre tour.

The tour kicks off this weekend when the Kumbia Queers perform at Vive Latino, the tenth incarnation of Mexico City’s annual international festival of rock en español at the Foro Sol. This is a huge festival drawing big names in Spanish-language music. The names that most caught my attention were rocker/accordionist Julieta Venegas, gay-friend Puerto Rican reggeaton duo Calle 13, and chilango klezmer geniuses Klezmerson. (Find times and stages at the complete schedule for Vive Latino.)

The Kumbia Queers will be opening Sunday afternoon’s shows on the escenario azul at 1:00 pm, so go and show them some macha love!

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.

In the last few weeks, wind has been blowing in Distrito Federal cleaning the sky, letting us contemplate the volcanoes and the mountains that surround the city. Coming from the airport, you can even see the Paso de Cortés, the saddle that links the Popocatépetl and the Iztaccíhuatl–as a reminder of the romantic legend that explains why these two volcanoes sit one beside the other.

Although it is true that the Torre Latinoamericana and the Torre Mayor are great spots to see the whole city, Macha Mexico recently found another place that is somehow neglected when it is about watching Mexico City’s skyline. The place is a restaurant called Bellini’s, located at the 45th floor of World Trade Center on Avenida Insurgentes.

To be honest, the food is pricey and not good. However, you can certainly order an appetizer, maybe a drink and enjoy the view. The restaurant (or whatever machine makes it spin) takes around an hour and forty-five minutes to get back to the starting point. We mind you that, depending on what time you arrive, you will find businessmen, straight couples or families. If this is not your first time in Mexico City you will certainly find some amusement identifying different ares of the city. Don’t forget a camera, and maybe a map to orient yourself from above…!

Bellini’s, Mexico World Trade Center , Montecito 38, 45th floor, Col. Nápoles. Monday to Saturday from 1pm to 2 am. Sundays from 9am to 11pm. Poliforum Metrobus station.

The same group that organized the march in defense of same-sex marriage last Saturday will host a series of lectures and debates next Tuesday and Wednesday regarding a series of matters:  human and gay rights, the separation between the Church and the State, the concept of family, and sexual diversity.

Activists and politicians closely involved in GLBT rights will speak during this event (including Rep. David Razú, who proposed the same-sex marriage bill). If you want to see the whole program you can click here.

Foro Derechos, ciudadanía y diversidad sexual, February 9th and 10th, 10 hrs., Comisión de Derechos Humanos del Distrito Federal, Av. Universidad No. 1449, Col. Florida, Phone number: 5229 5600.

You may think that Macha Mexico is obsessed with Xochimilco—but only until you are there you could understand why we go back again and again. Every time I have been there, I have enjoyed the company of great machas and savored great food made right in front of me by an expert woman who can prepare delicious quesadillas of flor de calabaza (squash blosson), delicious Oaxaca cheese, and my favorite, hutilacoche. Well, a couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to visit Xochimilco again, but I have to say, this time was the best, and probably will stay in my memory as one of the best trips I’ve ever made.

The reasons: we decided to go to the famous Isla de las Muñecas, a legendary place where many years ago an old man–Julián Santana Barrera–was scared by the spirit of a drowned woman who used to visit his chinampa. In order to fight the spirit Julián started collecting dolls that he found sunk in the canals or in the garbage and hung them around his house. Over the years, the collection grew bigger in size and fame, up to a point that locals and visitors would bring dolls too, until long lines of dolls completely surrounded the whole land.

In order to get there, you have to cross the Reserva Ecológica, which compels you to sail far away from the touristy parts of Xochimilco usually full of families and groups of friends who are sometimes singing to the tune of a mariachi or a marimba. Once you leave behind that area, Xochimilco becomes water and sky, herons landing here and there, milpas, and some cows that stare at you as you pass by. As you drift on the water you can actually see everyday life in Xochimilco: a house guarded by a dog here, little shops there, a bridge used by locals, little kids waving with their hands, carps (yes, carps) jumping from the water…

When you arrive to the Isla de las Muñecas you pay 10 pesos and you get to visit a little “museum” which is a little room where you can see Agustinita, the favorite doll of the old man who collected the dolls, seating on her own shrine. Julián’s nephew will tell you the legend of the place while you probably take pictures and peruse the place until you find a fish tank with two ajolotes, the legendary aquatic salamander that undergoes metamorphosis remaining in the water and gilled. No doubt that the whole place has a weird vibe (as expected), but you can ask your guide to take you to see the rest of the land—and his garden. He grows chard, chamomile, and chilacayotes (a type of big squash)—everything organic.

This time we didn’t go early in the morning as many people recommend to “enjoy” the trip. In fact, we arrived to Xochimilco around five which turned out to be a great timing since going back to downtown Xochimilco from Isla de las Muñecas allowed us to see the sunset and enjoy the night during the last part of the trip.

The cost of the trip was 1200 pesos (around a hundred dollars) and believe me, it worth it (thank you Islandia!).

As we were on our way back to Distrito Federal I really missed the water surrounding us. Being in Xochimilco makes you think about an ancient Mexico City that used to have canals instead of streets and trajineras as its main way of transportation. What if we’d started all over again and bring water to this dry lake that makes Mexico City sink more and more every year? Below, a photo montage inspired on this idea.

Taken last Summer at the exhibition Citámbulos, at the Museo Nacional de Antropología.

*Pictures via Macha Mexico’s friends on Facebook

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.

Jesusa Rodríguez and Liliana Felipe after formalizing their union through the Ley de Convivencia in 2007, via La Jornada

Jesusa Rodríguez and Liliana Felipe are a legendary couple in the history of Mexican culture and Mexican lesbianism. Rodríguez, a Mexican actress, playwright and social activist has a long career as an artist who experimented with opera, theater, cabaret, as well as other forms of popular theater such as a style of Mexican vaudeville called carpa. Felipe is an Argentinian singer and performer who has lived in Mexico as an exile after the dictatorship in Argentina began in 1976. She experimented with different rhythms such as tango and danzón, composing funny but witty songs about love and life between women.

During the nineties Felipe and Rodríguez opened El Hábito, a bar in Coyoacán, and the restaurant Teatro La Capilla, where protests against the government and the church in the form of cabaret always had a venue. Rodríguez and Felipe supported independent cultural groups and projects, and always committed themselves to political causes of national interest, but focusing in gender and GLBT issues. In 1991 they got married in a symbolic ceremony as a protest against the Catholic Church, and as a display of public support for Mexico City’s Leyes de Convivencia, the law that preceded this year’s gay-marriage bill. Unfortunately, Felipe and Rodríguez decided to retire in 2005. El Hábito is now run by a lesbian performance group, Las Reinas Chulas, under the name El Vicio.

Today Rodríguez and Felipe, after the good news of gay marriage in DF, wrote an open letter to La Jornada that Macha Mexico considers important to translate here:

Happy 2010 in a city that is a little bit more egalitarian!
Due to the lack of laws in this matter, we did not have other option than to live 30 years as simple lovers; but now that we finally have the same rights and obligations that every one else, Jesusa Rodríguez and Liliana Felipe would like to announce our upcoming marriage in Mexico City.

We also want to adopt two homeless girls in order to give them the education that they never had, they are: Mariana Gómez del Campo and Gabriela Cuevas [homophobic members of the conservative PAN party]. In spite of how difficult it is to reeducate an adult, we think that with patience and love everything is possible.

To Onésimo Cepeda and company, we ask them: and the kids raped by Maciel, who will they call father, who will they call grandfather, who will they call saint pedophile?

To all those who have not done it yet, we wish you that you come out of the closet this 2010 and enjoy your life more fully.

Long live equality!

Jesusa Rodríguez and Liliana Felipe