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The weekly newsletter of the México Solidarity Project |
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Every issue archived online at mexicosolidarityproject.org |
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December 20, 2023/ This week’s issue/ Bruce Hobson, for the editorial team |
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500 Years of Mining in Guanajuato |
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On the high plateau of central México at nearly 7000 feet is the city of Guanajuato, originally named Real de Minas de Guanajuato (Royal Mines of Guanajuato). It was founded in 1548 by colonial Spain for one reason only: to make Spain rich. Silver and gold extraction were foundational to Spain’s political economy, and in those times the mines of Guanajuato were the most productive in México.
From the 16th to the 18th centuries tens of thousands of Indigenous workers worked in Guanajuato’s mines. Their choices were limited — work hundreds of meters underground or let their families starve. Forced labor, poor diet, falls, silicosis, and beatings gave the average miner a life expectancy of 28. And plenty of others came to take their place when they died.
In 1810, nearly three hundred years later, Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and his ragtag army of 80,000 arrived in Guanajuato and declared war on Spain, thus initiating México’s War of Independence. Mexico got its independence — but mining continued. Mining accidents also continued. It was a miracle — un milagro — when miners were rescued; rare enough that when a mine flooded in Guanajuato in 1897 and the miners were saved, it was recorded in a retablo, a traditional style of tin painting reserved for miraculous events (see above).
Today, twenty mines still operate in and around Guanajuato. A maze of underground passageways connects many of the mines — some large enough for huge trucks to pass through. In this week’s issue, we talk with Felipe Rivera and Miguel Villegas, two miners who worked for decades in the mines. For 500 years and counting, working in the mines of Guanajuato has been a way of life. |
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We’re excited to announce MSP member José Luis Granados Ceja’s in-person US speaking tour! |
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This accomplished investigative journalist from México City spoke with hundreds of people on his East Coast tour, sparking much interest in México. He spoke about changes in México since AMLO’s election in 2018, and what they mean for México and US progressives. Walk, ride, fly — you won’t want to miss him when he comes to the West Coast, now scheduled for January/February. Stay tuned!! |
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News Alert! |
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Want to know more about México?
Is your appetite whetted for more information and analysis? The México Solidarity Project has launched a new web resource — México Solidarity Media. You will find everything you want to know in one place. This English language website provides news, translations of the best Spanish language articles, progressive analyses, multimedia resources, and the México Solidarity Bulletin. Check it out at: https://mexicosolidarity.com |
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Happy Holidays! |
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No matter what’s happening in our world, we all need to make time for joy and gratitude. Our team is truly grateful that you accompanied us as we visited the inspiring activists reshaping our hemisphere. We’re taking a two-week break and will be back in your email boxes on January 10. Onward to an exciting new year! |
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Two Miners Tell their Stories |
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Felipe Rivera (l) and Miguel Villegas (r), were interviewed in Guanajuato, México by Bruce Hobson, a resident of Guanajuato, for their first-hand experience of mining life. |
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In their families, mining goes back 150 years. Miguel Villegas now operates the huge elevator that transports workers down the 425-meter shaft of the four centuries old Rayas mine. Felipe Rivera believes that his great-great grandfather also worked in the Rayas mine. He no longer works there himself, but I met him near the mine, where he sells quartz crystals.
Tell me a little about how long you worked as a miner, and what that was like.
Felipe Rivera: I worked for 20 years and 6 months in the Raya and San Vicente mines. My father, my grandparents, many uncles and cousins and a brother also work or worked in the silver and gold mines in Guanajuato. |
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There are maybe 20 mines producing silver and gold in the Guanajuato area. In 1985 there were about 700 miners, but now there are fewer. In previous years, when production was high, there were thousands of miners.
We always worked eight hours, six days a week. In México, most workers work Monday to Friday, and just four hours on Saturday. Not us! |
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Colonial era building below the Raya mine. Photo/Bruce Hobson |
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Miguel Villegas: I have worked in the mines since I was young, but now I operate the elevator here at Raya to transport the miners 425 meters below. Practically, the mines in Guanajuato produce much more silver than gold.
Mining is a dangerous profession. Did you have moments when you thought you might not survive? |
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Museo Regional de Guanajuato, Alhóndiga de Granadita. Photo/Bruce Hobson |
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Felipe: The scariest time for me — I once set a charge of dynamite high up in a main shaft, lit the five-minute fuse, crawled back thirty meters, and waited. After twelve minutes the charge hadn’t gone off, so I went back up. The moment I got to the rock we wanted to blast, the charge went off and blew me back a great distance. I was hurt, but I survived. |
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Because mining underground is dangerous work, we always wear protection. But even with a mask, very fine dust gets through. Silicosis is the main health problem for miners; it kills you slowly. At the processing end, exposure to mercury and other toxic substances can be dangerous. But where we worked underground conditions are different.
I quit mining because, to tell the truth, I was tired. My health was still good, so I decided it was time to quit. So now I sell quartz minerals and occasional prehistoric fossils to tourists. Friends in the mines bring these up to me.
Miguel: Accidents do happen. Last year in Coahuila miners were trapped in a massive underground flood, and a number drowned. In August of this year, a 29-year-old miner died in the San Agustín mine here in Guanajuato. The thing is that at those depths, you have to be prepared for floods. There can also be explosions, as happened at the Pasta de Conchos mine in Coahuila in 2006. In that disaster, more than 60 miners perished in the early morning from a methane explosion. |
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Deep inside a Guanajuato mine. |
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During Spanish rule, there were terrible dangers for the miners. All the work was done by hand with picks and shovels. Many fell hundreds of meters to their death. In addition, the Spanish punished or killed miners for any pretext. Back then a miner could expect to live only a few decades. |
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Given the exploitation of miners, was there resistance against the Spanish mine owners? And what about resistance today — are you in a union? |
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Miguel: Of course the miners and the people always resisted the Spanish. When the leader of the independence movement Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla arrived in Guanajuato with his army, the Spanish soldiers took refuge in the huge La Alhóndiga granary. During the revolt, one miner, Juan José de los Reyes Martínez Amaro, known as El Pípila, at great risk, lit the door of the granary on fire. Hundreds of rebels entered and massacred all the soldiers. Later, Don Hidalgo was captured, and his head was hung in an iron cage on a high corner of La Alhóndiga. |
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Statue of El Pípila, the heroic Guanajuato miner in México"s war of Independence. Photo/Bruce Hobson |
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Felipe: No, there is no union. Up until recently, most of the miners were members of a cooperative, the Sociedad Cooperativa Minera Metalúrgica de Guanajuato (Mining Metallurgical Cooperative Society). One had to work in the mine for three months before being accepted into the cooperative. In México most of the mines are now managed by Canadians. When the cooperative ended a few years ago, the Canadians took over all the mines in Guanajuato except one.
Miguel: We never had the opportunity to be part of a union. The cooperative didn’t want a union, and the CTM unions are corrupt. With a union maybe we’d earn more. In reality, we don’t get paid enough. The average salary is $600 to $800 pesos (equivalent of $30–$46 dollars) per week, and we deserve more for our work.
Mining depends on water and a source of energy. In past centuries all the machinery was powered by steam, and to heat water firewood was needed. Is that why the mountains surrounding Guanajuato are bare? And because of contamination by toxic chemicals from mining, is that why no one drinks the water in Guanajuato? |
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Guanajuato. Photo/Bruce Hobson |
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Miguel: You’re right. No one trusts the water in Guanajuato. We are still living with the bad effects of centuries of mining with no thought of the people or of nature. Sadly, the loss of the great pine forests was a crime of the Spanish. And because of soil erosion the forests never recovered. It’s very sad. Spain gained a lot, while we the people lost a lot. |
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I think that AMLO's Sembrando Vida program which puts young people to work planting trees would be a good idea here. Hopefully, over time we can recover from the devastation caused by mining in Guanajuato. |
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Talking About Tren Maya: the Facts, Please |
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Jesús Hermosillo is a Los Angeles-based Chicano observer of politics in the United States and México. His analyses from a social justice perspective and his fact-based research refute misleading or false mainstream narratives. |
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The piece/As President López Obrador inaugurated the Tren Maya’s Campeche-Cancún line on December 15, the first passenger train service in the Yucatán Peninsula in decades, the BBC’s Will Grant criticized its ecological footprint in “Tren Maya: Mexico's Yucatán mega train — world beating or environmental disaster?”
The claim/The article’s main message is that the rail project is an environmental disaster. It cites the potential impact on delicate ecosystems in the rainforest, and on underground water caves called cenotes.
The back story/ The 930-mile railway is among several major public works AMLO says will jumpstart the region’s economy while building badly needed infrastructure. Most of Mexico’s passenger trains disappeared shortly after privatization decades ago, which in turn pushed up demand for (much dirtier) car and air travel. The railroad’s jungle route has raised valid questions from environmentalists and indigenous communities. What is often left out of the news coverage is that the government has addressed many such concerns, often modifying initial blueprints with route changes to protect flora, fauna, and residents. This helps explain the project’s general support among area residents.
Indeed, Benjamin Chim, whom Grant portrays as a kind of casualty — a Mayan farmer whose land was taken by the project without compensation — appears to actually be a Tren Maya supporter. Last year, AP News described someone with the same name and in the same town (who is “already employed by the Maya Train”) as saying “he doesn’t care” about losing “a bit of land” that had no value for him compared to the project’s economic promise for the region.
The bottom line/ Grant’s piece denigrates Mexico’s revival of train travel — which the European Union considers “overall the most environmentally friendly” transport mode — as little more than the whim of a “vainglorious leader.” He does not actually present a case against the role of rail in a nation’s development. Grant relies heavily on the ad hominem, is poor in data but rich in qualifiers (“Environmentalists… are horrified;” “deforestation… has been catastrophic;” etc.)
Like the project’s other mainstream English language coverage, what’s missing? Real data and the voices of the impoverished people in the nation’s South, a region long overlooked in terms of economic development, other than the tourist industry that has indeed been devastating for the environment. |
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The Minimum Wage: 400% More than 2018 |
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The minimum wage continues to rise. It will rise again by 20% in January, 2024; it has increased 400% since 2018.
The Associated Press/Updated December 1, 2023 |
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MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s president said Friday, December 1, 2023, that the country’s minimum wage will rise by 20% in January 2024 to the equivalent of about $14.25 per day.
About one-third of México’s registered workers report earning the minimum wage, which will amount to about $1.75 per hour starting Jan. 1.
In pesos, the minimum will rise from about 207 pesos to about 248 pesos. The minimum is higher in areas along the northern border (the maquiladora area), where living costs are higher. There, the 20% increase would take the minimum wage to about 375 pesos, or about $21.50 per day.
Part of the increase in dollar terms comes from the peso's appreciation against the dollar in the last year. The Mexican currency has risen by about 10% in value against the dollar since December 2022. That increase is largely attributable to the high inflow of remittances and high domestic interest rates, which make the peso attractive for investors. |
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Recent news reports and commentaries, from progressive and mainstream media, |
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García Luna solicita formalmente un nuevo juicio en EEUU
Trump gana terreno a Biden en estados claves
Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim’s fortune has passed the $100 billion mark for the first time. https://fortune.com/2023/12/14/carlos-slim-mexico-billionaire-net-worth/
Record cantidad de personas sin hogar en EEUU
¿Cuáles son los argumentos de Genaro García Luna para anular su juicio? https://laopinion.com/2023/12/15/cuales-son-los-argumentos-de-genaro-garcia-luna-para-anular-su-juicio/
Baena Saucedo was a promimnent LGBTQ+ rights activist.
Newmont's Penasquito gold mine in Mexico
Are US Gun Makers Responsible?
Trump and Univision
The fight for DACA continues https://mailchi.mp/eb426397fc05/labor-law-updates-12666672?e=f25e36a0af |
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The Mexico Solidarity Project brings together activists from various socialist and left organizations and individuals committed to worker and global justice. We see the 2018 election of Andrés Manuel López Obrador as president of México as a watershed moment. AMLO and his progressive Morena party aim to end generations of corruption, impoverishment, and subservience to US interests. Our Project supports not just Morena, but all Mexicans struggling for basic rights, and opposes US efforts to undermine organizing and México’s national sovereignty.
Editorial committee: Meizhu Lui, Bruce Hobson, Agatha Hinman, Victoria Hamlin, Courtney Childs. To give feedback or get involved yourself, please email us! |
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