Dissiden Women Chapter 8

In this chapter titled “A consideration of the Daily Life of Zapatista Women” by Violeta Zylberberg Panebianco, spoke about the Zapatista National Liberation Army (ELZN) and the daily lives of women who do participate in the group as well as their participation within the group. The Zapatista movement was looking for eliminate gender inequality in the workplace for these women although that would be a mountain to conquer in itself. It is said that “…women participate within the EZLN at all levels”, (222) some of the women are apart of organizing communities and region, some live in military camps in the mountains, and other who live in their communities but have had some military training, and lastly other are apart of the support base. Zylberberg Panebianco focuses directly on the women who form the support bases because “…little is know about the women who form the Zapatista support bases, about their daily struggle to survive under the low-intensity warder that besieges their communities, to transform the “traditions” that regulate their lives” (223).
Part of these women’s daily lives included them become displaced by the Mexican Army and their families ended up fleeing to the mountains. Once the army arrived “all their belongings had been destroyed, their animals had been stolen or killed to feed the soldiers, and the corn and beans from the year’s harvest were scattered on the ground, mixed with the soldiers’ feces and urine” (225). This sounded like the militaries own way to make sure that nothing came back, almost like burning the fields. These women deal with a military presence everywhere they turn. I wonder why they go after the women who work as the support base. These women are always being watched and “…the presence of federal troops has altered how the people go about their daily activities” (225), so I can only imagine how the army being around had made the mobility of these women harder because they have to walk farther to collect firewood and water.
Zylberberg Panebianco also talk about the Zapatista uprising and how men are helping women more with domestic tasks. On individual said that “If I finish early with my work, I can help, Women have a lot of work, and there are things we can help with” (230). One of the men said that he would help to grind corn, but not make tortillas. I think that even though the men do want to help they are still trying to hang on to traditional values, but it is nice that they would grind the corn or shuck the corn, or feed the pigs because that decreases the amount of work which the men will do. I can only imagine that this could possibly change over time where men would do more, but you cannot expect men to be in the kitchens with aprons tomorrow taking care of the home and children. This type of change will not be immediate. I think although the Zapatistas had a movement, the women who are in the support base position their lives have changed much, but the Zapatista movement as a whole did change how people looked at indigenous women. They weren’t women who couldn’t, but they became women who can and did make change if not in the communities, but their homes.
Di