Federico Reyes Heroles
…Mask the face and mask the smile.
Octavio Paz
He told me in a tone that he couldn’t take “no” for an answer. He knows it. Just a pancake was the final blow. Here we go, to La Sirenita (The Little Mermaid), that’s what my companion – 80 cm tall – calls the famous cafeteria. Already seated, as he slowly enjoyed his pancake and I waited to sip my fiery cappuccino, there was a blissful silence. At the adjacent table, a couple in sporting attire were arguing. Why don’t you want to see it, she said. He kept silent. She raised her tone.
“Don’t evade, this week, the Amparo Law and the amnesty. What do you think they want? They go for everything; they lie to us daily. And what about corruption, now… Nahle. Why don’t you want to talk about politics? There is extortion in the company and everyone knows it. But just like you, nobody wants to talk about the obvious. Sometimes, a few times, we say something to each other, but none of the bosses have mentioned it. Like you, they keep their heads down. You can’t vote for them, even if you are in public office. The vote is secret. What are they going to do to you?” the man, staring at the table, didn’t say a word. That made her angrier.
She didn’t give me a single taste of her pancake. We got into the car, and at a corner, we ran into a young woman with a child in her arms and another on the sidewalk holding a sign: “Food for crafts”. On the ground, there were backpacks, bags, and handicrafts. I tried to explain to her something about migration. We agreed to return with food for them, but they were no longer there the next day. What is wrong with us? Why do we avoid talking about politics with certain friends and even family members, let alone work colleagues? Paz captured that trait of the Mexican: avoiding public confrontation, the multiple masks. Agachón is the popular expression, which the fantastic new edition of the Dictionary of Mexican Idioms equates with a coward. I refuse to accept it; on the contrary, there is a new citizenship that is more and more open and confrontational.
I came across an excellent article by Sergio Negrete Cárdenas: A similar story? Las encuestas en la elección del 2000, published in Literal Magazine. The ITESO academic, with rich experience abroad, carried out a simple but provocative exercise: he went back to the 2000 election. Between November 1999 and February, 22 polls were conducted, and only two gave Fox the victory. The trends had closed, but only slightly. Labastida was about eight points ahead. In March and April, 14 polls were conducted, and only two gave Fox as the winner. In May and June, the closing, 19 were published, of which 13 gave Labastida the victory. Of the 11 published in the second half of June, eight gave the PRI candidate the victory. The margin closes at five points. The election shakes: Fox, 42.52%; Labastida, 36.11%; Cárdenas never raised, 16.66%. What happened, the author answers: “…people were afraid to say they would vote for the opposition”, and subtitles: “History does not repeat itself, but sometimes it rhymes”.
In February, the agency Activa Mexico reported that 63% of Mexicans were afraid to express their opinion. If we add to this the main axis of the official campaign, which is the threat of losing support which reaches tens of millions, and the omnipresent violence, then the generalized fear is explainable. But let us return to The Little Mermaid. There are multiple threats looming over our democracy, thousands of lies launched from the presidential megaphone, and corruption is thunderous. Let’s talk about it all. Let us do it in an informed and calm manner. Let us make the silent or fearful see that one of the great inventions of the West is secrecy. If they demand a photo of their ballot, let them denounce it. There are other ways to contain extortion.
For the time being, let’s have a cup of coffee and argue.
By the way, an hour later I looked at them in the distance, they were still there. Add patience to your coffee; it helps.
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