Saturday, March 8th was International Women’s Day. I was in Mexico City and had the opportunity to see the largest gathering of women in my life.
Two hundred and two thousand women of every age and from near and far gathered at the Monument of the Mexican Revolution and then marched to the Zocalo, the national square in front of the Presidential Palace, to claim their rights of structural equality in Mexican society. The color purple was everywhere along with the signs and standards that proclaimed the desire for better relations with the men in their lives.
There were so many that as the multitude walked along the famous Juarez Avenue next to Alameda Park it went over the roped off areas and overwhelmed the vendors on the sidewalks. It was a sight to see.
The following day, Sunday the 9th, was another record breaking event as an estimated 350 thousand people came to the Zocalo to listen to a major speech by Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, the President of the country. She had promised during one of her daily briefings that she would speak that Sunday about Mexico’s planned response to America’s President Trump’s imposition of a 25 percent import tariff on Mexican imports among other trade issues.
But then, Sheinbaum had a telephone conversation with Trump after which he decided to delay the tariff until April 2nd. So, since no response was warranted at the time, President Sheinbaum called for a celebration of successful diplomacy for the time being.
The national movement to change the Constitution and international challenges like her working relationship with Trump illustrate the Mexican President’s leadership at its best. Sheinbaum has learned not to get rattled by bluster as well as to maintain the unity and support of the nation that shows an over 80 percent approval of her administration.
Eleven out of the 21 positions in Sheinbaum’s cabinet are held by women. They include the all-important secretariat of the Interior that deals with the 32 states, Environment and Resources, Energy, Anti-corruption and Good Government, Agrarian and Urban Development, Culture, Tourism, Science, Humanities, Technology and Innovation, Women and Legal Council to the Federal Executive.
The 2025 symbol for the presidency is “Indigenous Women Heroes.” Also, the conceptual base of the Mexican President’s priorities is evidenced by the motto, “For the Good of All, the Poor Come First.”
The notion of providing effective opportunity that pulls the poor out of poverty and move the country to identify with its pre-Colombian past, that is also present in the indigenous communities in every region today, represents a profound and ongoing cultural change designed to prepare the country for a future without the self-doubt that has plagued the conquered and colonize regions of the Americas.
President Andres Lopez Obrador in the previous 6 years of his presidency set the stage for the journey undertaken by President Claudia Sheinbaum as she leads Mexico away from a Eurocentric model to that of a world that was interrupted by immigrants from across the sea to the East. In the process, Sheinbaum is also attacking the gender disparities that have been an intimate part of Mexican history.
President Sheinbaum personifies the epic cultural and gender shift in a very meaningful way. This representation fits her personality as she has been a life-long social activist. Yet, in this time of threatening instability, Sheinbaum has put away her activist hat and taken on the role of a negotiator that cooly advances the notion of collaboration without subordination. She is a woman of her time.
The views expressed by David Conde are not necessarily the views of LaVozColorado. Comments and responses may be directed to News@lavozcolorado.com.
